Posted on 11/06/2014 4:48:45 AM PST by thackney
Gunmen seized Libya's major El Sharara oilfield, looting equipment and shooting as frightened workers sought shelter, oil sources said on Wednesday, in another blow to the country's oil industry which has been subjected to protests and militia blockades.
It was unclear exactly what happened at the field, which at maximum capacity produces about 340,000 barrels per day. It is Libya's biggest operational field, located in the remote south where rival tribes have clashed since Muammar Gaddafi was ousted three years ago....
The closure will lower the OPEC member's oil production, last reported at around 800,000 bpd, by at least 200,000 bpd.
The field produced at least 200,000 barrels per day before the shutdown, the sources said. It had been running below capacity as some wells had been lost due to previous closures by local people in the past 12 months.
The closure will have an impact on the 120,000 bpd-Zawiya refinery, which is fed by El Sharara and supplies the capital with fuel products.
A source in the state oil security force said the management had shut down production after gunmen with heavy weapons stormed the field late on Tuesday, wounding 13 workers.
...The facility is operated by Libya's state oil company and Spain's Repsol.
The oil security force said the attackers belonged to an Islamist group, while the online magazine Libya Herald said they were supporters of an armed group that had seized the capital Tripoli in August....
Libya's oil industry has been recovering from a wave of blockades, mainly at eastern export ports, which ended with a government deal that lifted output to 800,000 bpd. This is still less than the 1.4 million bpd Libya used to pump in July 2013 when the protests started.
(Excerpt) Read more at rigzone.com ...
Sounds like it would be too marginal to affect world prices. If it spread to the rest of Libya, however...
Actually, Libya coming back online was the largest recent change and I think had a significant effect on oil prices. Several Oil Market Analysts have made this point.
In my opinion, the market has over-reacted driving down prices to fast to be sustain, barring any other changes, I think.
This might pull back on the speculation driving prices so quickly low. Might, maybe, could be...
Mid-term elections are over, democrats lost...prices will rise significantly regardless.
Libya at present is almost ungovernable.
At least a new generation of their military is receiving top-notch training in Britain as we speak. Oh, wait...
(Check yesterday’s threads for reference...LOL)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.