By Lucy Adautin
The Libyan oil export port of Hariga has ceased operations due to lack of crude supplies, according to two engineers at the terminal on Saturday.
This development comes as a standoff between rival political factions has led to the shutdown of most of the country’s oilfields.
This week’s escalation in the conflict over control of the central bank poses a new threat of instability in Libya, a significant oil producer divided between eastern and western factions.
The eastern-based administration, which oversees oilfields responsible for nearly all of Libya’s production, is demanding that western authorities step back from their efforts to replace the central bank governor—a crucial role in a state where control over oil revenue is the ultimate prize for all factions.
Hariga’s exports halted after the Sarir oilfield, the port’s primary supplier, was almost entirely shut down, according to the engineers.
Heritage Times HT reports Sarir typically produces approximately 209,000 barrels per day (bpd), while Libya as a whole pumped approximately 1.18 million bpd in July.
Recently, Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC), which manages the country’s oil resources, announced that the recent oilfield closures have resulted in a loss of about 63% of total oil production.
