Rice says Libya is about more than oil

TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Washington's rapprochement with OPEC member Libya is motivated by more than just the U.S. need for oil, top U.S. diplomat Condoleezza Rice said on a historic visit to Tripoli on Friday.

Rice is making the first visit to the north African country by a U.S. secretary of state since 1953, a trip U.S. officials hope will end decades of enmity and violence five years after Libya gave up its weapons of mass destruction program in 2003.

Referring to the possible impact of the trip on bilateral ties, Rice told reporters: "It is helpful, but this is a much broader relationship."

"It has much broader potential than just energy."

But Rice added that Libya, owner of Africa's largest oil reserves, could help in terms of the world's fuel supplies and that it was important to have reliable and multiple source of energy.

U.S. companies want to compete for contracts in a wide range of sectors in Libya, which is seeking to rebuild its economy after years of sanctions. Such sectors include agriculture, water, telecoms, transport, power generation, construction, engineering, banking and health services.

Libya's energy sector is already open to U.S. participation. but better relations, in particular the provision of more visas for U.S. executives, are expected to help deepen the U.S. role in the energy sector.

The main U.S. companies involved in Libya are Amerada Hess, ExxonMobil, Chevron and Occidental.

The United States imported an average of 85,500 barrels per day of Libyan oil in 2006, equivalent to about seven percent of Libyan petroleum exports, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Libya's main oil customers are European countries.

(Reporting by Sue Pleming, writing by William Maclean, editing by William Hardy)