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Libyan Oil Minister Mohamed Aoun has called on the government to replace the board of directors of the Libyan national oil company, including longtime chairman Mustafa Sanalla, according to a letter seen by Bloomberg.
Aoun said the change is needed as soon as possible because the current board of directors of the National Oil Corporation has been formed in a way that contradicts the laws of OPEC member countries. Aoun added in the letter that Taher al-Qahtani should replace Sanalla.
Libya has Africa’s largest oil reserves, but civil war and conflict since the fall of former President Muammar Gaddafi ten years ago have shut down several foreign oil companies and cut their investments. A truce in the middle of last year and the formation of a unity government have helped stabilize production in recent months.
Sanalla served as chairman of the board for seven years and effectively managed the energy sector – including representing Libya at meetings of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries – until Aoun was appointed in March as the country’s premier oil minister since 2014. While the National Oil Corporation was one of the few institutions capable of working across political divisions in Libya.
Aoun said in an interview this month that Libya will struggle to maintain oil production levels unless lawmakers overcome their differences and pass the budget.
Aoun revealed that the country pumps around 1.3 million barrels of crude per day and aims to increase it to 1.5 million by the end of 2021.
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