Vega, the largest oil field in the Mediterranean Sea, is located between the southern coast of Sicily and the island of Malta. Its discovery in October, 1980 was based on interpretation of very poor-quality seismic data which, nevertheless, outlined a relatively small structure. The Vega structure lies across the edge of the Late Jurassic-age "Inici" or Siracusa platform. The northeastern flank appears to be controlled mainly by facies variations between the Inici and basinal sediments, while the southwestern edge is controlled by dip.

The fractured limestone and dolomite reservoir may contain in excess of one billion barrels of oil, 30% to 50% of which may be recoverable. Heavy crude is contained within a productive area of approximately 4,000 hectares (10,000 acres). A deeper objective, the Triassic Taormina Dolomite, a major producing reservoir in the basin, has not yet been drilled in this field. The potential for discovery of other fields similar to Vega in the Ragusa basin is excellent.

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