Closure of Largest Oil Field in Libya and National Oil Corporation Declare Force Majeure Status

Ahmed Ghadar

LONDON (Reuters) – Production of Sharara, the country's largest oil field, has been halted following the closure of a pipeline valve that would connect it to the oil hub of the oil hub, the company said on Wednesday. oil giant of the country.

A document seen by Reuters showed that the National Oil Corporation (NOC) had declared a case of force majeure for sparked operations on Wednesday.

The location of the valve on the pipeline was not yet clear, and the National Oil Corporation (NOC) said that "unidentified people" were behind the closing of the valve.

The field of sparks represents a quarter of Libyan oil production.

The organization said in a statement that a number of the company's oil operations employees in Akacos had tried to reopen the tap, "but were stopped by an armed group".

Negotiations were underway to try to resume production as soon as possible.

The field, which produces 290,000 barrels a day, was closed for a few days on July 19 as a result of the closure of a valve on the pipeline connecting the corner located in the Hamada area, to the West of Libya.

The closure also prompted the National Oil Corporation to declare force majeure status on crude oil loading operations. It was lifted on July 22 after the reopening of the valve.

Before closing, Libya was producing 1.2 to 1.3 million barrels a day, its highest level in six years for the OPEC member, which is struggling to return to a production capacity of 1.6 million barrels a day before the civil war.

"This incident demonstrates the fragility of the security situation in our country and the disregard for the grave consequences of such heinous acts on the lives of Libyan citizens," said Mustafa Sannallah, president of the National Oil Corporation.

He added that spark-starved production had severely blocked the power supply to the country's electricity grid, as the field was supplying crude oil to the Opare plant to produce electricity.

Alternative arrangements were being prepared to ensure continuity of operations at the station.

The spark field is also fueling the 120,000 bpd oil refinery adjacent to the oil export terminal. But the refinery has been closed for weeks due to power problems.

The state-owned National Oil Corporation (NOC) operates the sparks field in partnership with the Spanish companies Repsol, Total France, OMV Nordic and Aquinor.

(Reuters)