Libya's NOC Says Oil Production Sank by Over 5 Times Since 18 January Over Ports Blockade

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Oil production in Libya had fallen from 1.04 million barrels per day on 18 January to 181,576 barrels per day on 5 February over the ongoing blockade of ports, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) said.

“National Oil Corporation (NOC) renews its call for all blockades to be lifted to allow the corporation to resume production immediately, for the sake of Libya and its people”, the corporation said on late Friday in a statement.

In January, NOC announced an emergency due to its inability to ship oil from Libyan ports. According to the corporation, the shipping was stopped per the order of the Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar.

The situation has escalated over the past several weeks as LNA commander Haftar ordered his troops to advance on the GNA-held capital of Tripoli. Last month’s peace conference in Berlin failed to put an end to violence in the war-torn Arab nation.

After the ouster and assassination of then-Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, the country was plunged into political turmoil. Two rival administrations have since practically split the oil-rich nation, with the LNA controlling the east and the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) controlling the west.