Libya’s NOC declares force majeure at Zawiya refinery after it caught fire

Libya’s state-owned National Oil Corporation (NOC) declared force majeure at its 120,000 b/d Zawiya refinery on Sunday following clashes between armed groups near the facility.

NOC said a number of storage tanks were hit, causing fires. These were subsequently brought under control, it added.

Zawiya is Libya’s largest operational refinery, with most of its production absorbed domestically. It runs on crude from Libya’s Repsol-led El Sharara oil field.

The clashes between rival armed groups in Al-Zawiya claimed the life of one individual and left ten others injured. Fighting broke out across several key areas, including the coastal road between the vegetable market bridge and the Al-Harsha traffic light, as well as the refinery road to the north, according to press reports.
The unrest caused widespread disruption, with the fires at the refinery heightening fears of a larger disaster. The NOC’s declaration of a state of force majeure reflects the critical nature of the situation, which threatens the stability of Libya’s oil production and export activities.

By Sunday afternoon, a fragile calm returned to Al-Zawiya after local elders and community leaders intervened to mediate between the warring factions. Their efforts helped halt the fighting and allowed some semblance of normalcy to return to the city.

Any prolonged fighting and wider damage to the Zawiya complex could threaten production at El Sharara, particularly if exports are forced to stop.

Zawiya exported 160,000 b/d of Esharara crude last month, and is scheduled to load eight cargoes also worth about 160,000 b/d in December.

Political instability has led to several forced shutdowns of oil production facilities over the past decade or so. El Sharara only just returned to production in early October following a forced outage which also affected other fields throughout the country.

Libya produced 1.24mn b/d of crude in November, Argus estimates.