Libya ... boosting output
Two tankers to lift 1.3 m barrels of oil from eastern Libyan ports
BENGHAZI, April 20, 2015
Two tankers will lift 1.3 million barrels of crude from east Libyan ports Hariga and Zueitina, oil officials said.
The Hariga port was expecting a tanker to lift 700,000 barrels of crude, an oil official said. A second tanker would dock in the next few days at the Zueitina port to lift 600,000 barrels, another official said.
A third tanker was currently docked at Hariga, located near the border to Egypt, to ship petrol for local consumption.
Opec producer Libya has managed to boost output to almost 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) by reopening two western fields and keeping eastern ports open despite militant attacks and fighting between rival factions allied to two competing governments vying for control.
But the oil sector is facing uncertainty. The internationally-recognised government based in the east has unveiled plans to sell oil via a new state firm bypassing the established entity in the capital Tripoli.
Oil insiders say it will be difficult to lure buyers to change the payment systems because the new company would have to prove it owns the oil reserves. Contracts with existing buyers and geological maps are stored in Tripoli, out of control of the eastern government. --Reuters
