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| Africa North |
| Production at Sharara oilfield collapses following attacks |
| 2014-11-07 |
| [Libya Herald] Production at the Akakus Oil operated Sharara oilfield has ceased following attacks yesterday by a Tuareg militia aligned with Libya Dawn ...aka Fajr Libya, the Islamist operation launched to counter that of General Khalifa Haftar (Operation Dignity). It is made up of the Libya Shield militia (Misrata and Moslem Brotherhood), Libya Revolutionaries Operations Room (Moslem Brotherhood), and Tripoli Brigade (close to Abdul Hakim Belhaj, head of Al-Watan party). Financing and moral support come from Turkey and Qatar... "The production has fallen to zero," a bigwig at Sharara said. He explained that the chaos of the Tuareg attacks had blocked roads making the field inaccessible to some workers. "Some employees are unable to reach the field and some others are locked in, afraid to leave," he said. Yesterday the marauding gunnies stormed Sharara stealing some 20 vehicles belonging to Akakus Oil and making off with computers and documents belonging to the company. The attackers surprised Zintani Petroleum Facilities Guards at the oil field and left no chance for armed confrontation. The Taureg bully boyz are believed to be linked with other Taureg fighters involved in festivities in Obari some 60 kilometres away. While the gunnies appear to have left the immediate area, Sharara remains vulnerable to another attack. The closing of the oil field, a joint venture between Spain's Repsol and the National Oil Corporation (NOC), is a massive blow to the country's oil production. Sharara's 350,000 barrels per day accounted for more than a third of national production which has recently stood at less than 800,000 b/d. Oil started flowing from Sharara in July after on and off closures of more than a year and a half. The development will cast doubts on whether national production can withstand current instability in the country. Output has actually increased since August in spite of a surge in violence. The boosted production came about because of the reopening of eastern oil terminals. After the revolution, to general surprise Libyan output approached 1.7 million b/d and was confidently expected to pass the two million barrel mark early this year. |
| Posted by:Fred |