Armed group shuts Libyan pipeline, putting 15,000 barrels at risk
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Tunisia Online
An armed group closed a valve on the main pipeline linking the Hamada field to the Zaouïa refinery in Libya, halting pumping. Libya’s National Oil Corporation estimates the blockage could deprive the refinery of about 15,000 barrels of crude oil a day and threaten the facilities, according to its statement.
An armed group closed a valve on the pipeline linking the Hamada oil field to the Zaouïa refinery in Libya, halting pumping operations, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) announced on Friday 30 October. The closure could deprive the refinery of about 15,000 barrels of crude oil a day if it continues, according to the NOC.
The forced closure caused pressure in the 18-inch pipeline to rise. Technical teams therefore stopped pumping at 00:30 on Friday to protect the facilities, the company said. The figure of 15,000 barrels represents a potential loss, not an amount already lost.
The NOC called on the relevant authorities, including the petroleum facilities guards, to secure the pipeline, reopen the valve and allow pumping to resume. The pipeline supplies crude oil to the Zaouïa refinery, which is essential to its refining operations.
The incident comes days after the Hamada and Tahara fields pipeline was put back into service, announced on 24 October.
