Libya‘s oil production is back on track

After halting its oil production during the uprising against Ghaddafi and beginning production activities after his ousting, Libya has finally reached the production level of the Ghaddafi era and has surpassed expectations.
At the beginning of the year, oil minister Abdelbari Arusi said they are hoping to reach the level of 1,7million barrels per day by the end of the year. Last month, the country pumped 1.325 million barrels per day, according to a survey of industry and official sources conducted by Dow Jones Newswires.
The announcement was made by Deputy Prime Minister Awad al-Baraasi during an energy conference in Dubai. He stated that “oil production has returned to the pre-war levels” but didn’t disclose the precise amount produced nor gave an estimate. However, it can be recalled that 1.7 million barrels per day was the level of production before the country went into chaos.
The chairman of the National Oil Corporation has shown his desire to surpass this level by the end of March. He said they want to produce a 1,72 million barrels per day, if the production is not interrupted by demonstrations.
Lack of necessary infrastructure, insecurity, and rigid contract terms have been criticized by foreign companies especially with the rise in protests and attacks on oil and gas facilities. The Oil Minister has assured that security in the country is improving and accused the media of exaggeration. He said that security concerns in Libya are “being amplified by the media.”
The North African country heavily depends on its oil and it has one of the biggest crude reserves of the continent. There is still a possibility of increasing its production levels but security and frequent demonstrations remain to be solved. It has recently banned the presence of foreign security on its oilfields.