Libya's Oil Chief Rejects Sacking, Says Govt Mandate Expired
The head of Libya's National Oil Corp (NOC) on Wednesday rejected the prime minister's authority to sack him, raising the prospect of an open struggle for control of the state energy producer.In a furious televised speech, Mustafa Sanalla said Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah's mandate to govern had expired and warned him not to touch NOC.An armed force deployed outside the NOC building later in the day, three witnesses said. One of them said the force was aligned with Dbeibah.
Stored Crude, Condensate Could be Shipped from Shuttered Libyan Ports
A limited reopening of Libyan oil terminals could allow the export of some crude oil and condensate stored at Es Sider, Brega, Zueitina and Hariga, but leaves a months-long blockade of the ports in place, oil engineers say.East Libyan authorities said on Wednesday they would permit exports of the stored products in an effort to ease an electricity supply crisis that has resulted in increasingly lengthy power cuts.The ports have been blockaded since January by east Libyan factions as part a wider conflict…
Libya's NOC Warning Over Impact of Oil Blockade
The head of Libya's state oil firm warned on Monday that if the international community tolerates a blockade on the country's oil industry it would be complicit in ending the rule of law in the country.The 10-day old blockade is the most extensive for years, shutting down fields and ports in the east and south of Libya and causing production to plunge to 262,000 barrels per day (bpd) from around 1.2 million.Production has gradually been falling since the blockade began as storage capacity in Libya's ports fills up, forcing Libya's National Oil Corp (NOC) to shut in production upstream.NOC Chairman Mustafa Sanalla said that at the Ras Lanuf port only 30% of storage capacity was operational…
Libyan's Zueitina Port To Open After Damages Assessed
Libya's eastern oil port of Zueitina, which had been occupied by rebels as part of an eight-month oil blockade, will reopen after damage at its facilities has been assessed, the country's justice minister said on Sunday. Salah al-Merghani also told reporters in the eastern city of Benghazi that a committee to investigate oil corruption had been formed, as agreed under a deal between the government and rebels to end a blockade of eastern oil ports. The reopening of four oil export terminal has been delayed with the rebels accusing the government of not fulfilling all parts of the deal, such as paying financial compensation. Under the…
Libya says halts tanker outside rebel port; rebels deny it
Rebels deny losing control of North Korean-flagged tanker; Government says tanker being taken to western port. Oil blockade has slashed vital government revenues. Libya on Monday stopped a North Korean-flagged tanker that had loaded oil from a rebel-held port, after naval forces briefly exchanged fire with the rebels, officials said. But in a sign of the chaos and conflicting information typical for Libya, rebel leader Ibrahim Jathran denied in a televised statement broadcast from a ship that he had lost control of the oil tanker. The LIbyan officials also said the government will assemble forces to "liberate" all occupied ports, raising the stakes over a blockage that has cut off vital oil revenue.
