Libyan strongman blamed for closure of oil facilities

Libyan strongman blamed for closure of oil facilities

Libya’s oil minister has blamed forces allied to an influential strongman for a wave of closures of oilfields and export terminals that have slashed the country’s oil output almost by half.

In recent days, protesters have blockaded oil facilities in order to pressure Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, the prime minister, to step down. Libya produces 1.3mn barrels per day and the closures have taken out more than 550,000 b/d of its output this week, equivalent to about 0.5 per cent of global oil supply.

Mohamed Oun, oil minister in Dbeibeh’s government of national unity, told the Financial Times the blockades could not have happened without the co-operation of the Petroleum Facilities guard, which is under the control of Khalifa Haftar. The military strongman controls the east of the country, backs a rival government and has previously tried to capture Tripoli.

“They guard the oil facilities and no one can enter without their permission,” said Oun. “The number of protesters we are seeing in video footage is not enough to shut down oil exports and they have not entered inside the facilities.” 

The disruption threatens to add to global concerns about crude supply as EU members mull a ban on imports of Russian oil. Even before