PANAPRESS
Panafrican News Agency
Libya: Oil production rises to 300,000 barrels/day
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) – The resumption of production in Libya's southern oilfield of al-Fil, which produces 105,000 barrels/day, has pushed up production to 300,000 barrels/day, sources at the Libyan national oil company (NOC) said.
The production at al-Fil was suspended early this month because of activities of protest movements, said NOC spokesperson Mohamed al-Harairi, in a declaration reported on Saturday by the Libyan media.
In another development, he said that al-Harriga oil port in the east had resumed its activities and an oil tanker was about to be loaded with 600,000 barrels after an agreement was reached with a group of guards of oil installations who protested against the non-payment of their salary arrears.
A first cargo of 750,000 barrels of crude oil was loaded on 21 June from that oil port after more than two months of suspension, but demonstrators closed it again.
Libya, Africa's fourth largest oil producer, saw output of 1.6 million barrels per day before the revolution that ousted the regime of Mouamar Kadhafi in 2011.
In 2012 production was about 1.5 million barrels/day before dropping to less than 200,000 barrels/day after the closing of oil terminals in the east of the country by separatist armed groups.
Former oil guards have since July been blocking the oil terminals in eastern Libya to protest against the sale of crude oil without measuring units, but they transformed their movement to demand the autonomy of Cyrenaic in the east.
An agreement saw the lifting of the blockade in the two ports, al-Harrigua and Zueitina.
-0- PANA BY/JSG/MSA/MA 28June2014
The production at al-Fil was suspended early this month because of activities of protest movements, said NOC spokesperson Mohamed al-Harairi, in a declaration reported on Saturday by the Libyan media.
In another development, he said that al-Harriga oil port in the east had resumed its activities and an oil tanker was about to be loaded with 600,000 barrels after an agreement was reached with a group of guards of oil installations who protested against the non-payment of their salary arrears.
A first cargo of 750,000 barrels of crude oil was loaded on 21 June from that oil port after more than two months of suspension, but demonstrators closed it again.
Libya, Africa's fourth largest oil producer, saw output of 1.6 million barrels per day before the revolution that ousted the regime of Mouamar Kadhafi in 2011.
In 2012 production was about 1.5 million barrels/day before dropping to less than 200,000 barrels/day after the closing of oil terminals in the east of the country by separatist armed groups.
Former oil guards have since July been blocking the oil terminals in eastern Libya to protest against the sale of crude oil without measuring units, but they transformed their movement to demand the autonomy of Cyrenaic in the east.
An agreement saw the lifting of the blockade in the two ports, al-Harrigua and Zueitina.
-0- PANA BY/JSG/MSA/MA 28June2014
