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Libyan national oil company suspends production at largest oilfields over political rivalries

Published

3 years ago

April 20, 2022

Libya’s National Oil Company (NOC), has suspended operations at two of the country’s major oil sites, the Zouetina terminal and the al-Charara field, after shutting down several other facilities in connection with protests and political rivalries.

The closures which were announced on Tuesday, came at a time the Libya is struggling to leave the shadow of the Muammar Gaddafi’s regime which was overthrown in 2011.

The country’s parliament had in February, appointed Fathi Bachagha as the new head of government but he has not succeeded in ousting the current executive in Tripoli led by Abdelhamid Dbeibah, who refused to hand over power before elections were held.

In a statement, the NOC regretted “the beginning of a painful wave of closures of oil facilities coming at a time when oil and gas prices are soaring on international markets under the impact of the war in Ukraine.”

As at Tuesday afternoon, the NOC had been forced to close the al-Fil oil field, Zouetina terminal in the east, Mellitah terminal in the north-west, al-Sarrir, east and Al Khaleej also in the east, saying they were “forced to stop production completely and gradually.”

“Production “at the Abu Al-Tifl (east), al-Intissar (east), al-Nakhla (east) fields also ceased on Sunday, as did gas production at plants affiliated to these sites and at the port of Zouetina. A group of individuals forced their way in to force employees to stop operations,” the NOC said.

“In such a context, the NOC is forced to declare a state of force majeure on the oil port of Zouetina as well as on all the fields and factories associated with this port until further notice,” the NOC said.

The closure of Zouetina, one of the four oil terminals in the so-called “Oil Crescent” region (east), will deprive Libya of the export of nearly a quarter of its production.

Related Topics:Featured Libya Oil Company Politics

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VenturesNow

Food prices drive second straight monthly hike in Nigeria’s inflation

Published

8 hours ago

November 17, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to official statistics released on Friday, Nigeria’s inflation rate increased for the second consecutive month in October, rising to 33.88% in annual terms from 32.70% in September, mostly as a result of increasing food costs.

In an attempt to boost economic development and strengthen public finances, President Bola Tinubu devalued the naira and reduced subsidies, which caused inflation to spike in the second half of last year.

As the effects of the naira devaluation started to lessen in July of this year, a slew of hikes in the price of petroleum and devastating floods that destroyed crops once again exacerbated pricing pressures, making the greatest cost-of-living crisis in decades worse in Africa’s most populous country.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, price increases for basics such as rice, maize, bread, potatoes, and cooking oil prompted food inflation to surge from 37.77% in October to 39.16% year over year.

This year, more than 1.5 million hectares of agriculture have been damaged by torrential rain and floods in 29 of Nigeria’s 36 states, leaving millions hungry and displacing large numbers of people.

In an effort to curb inflation, the central bank has raised interest rates five times this year. On November 26, it is expected to make its final rate decision of the year.

VenturesNow

MTN financial report reveals drop in group service revenue

Published

8 hours ago

November 17, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Due to operational difficulties in Sudan and the depreciation of the Nigerian naira, MTN Group, Africa’s largest telecom provider, announced on Thursday an 18.5% decline in service revenue for the third quarter that concluded on September 30.

With 288 million users in 17 African regions, MTN said that its group service revenue dropped from 156.3 billion rand ($6.99 billion) in the same quarter of the previous year to 127.4 billion rand.

Despite stating that “the naira was less volatile on a sequential basis in Q3 than in preceding quarters,” the business reported a 48.7% decline in MTN Nigeria’s income due to the currency’s depreciation.

Due to a stronger Ugandan shilling than the previous year, Uganda’s largest contributor, MTN South Africa (MTN SA), expanded by a meagre 3.3%.

Due to “subscriber registration regulations in Nigeria and a decline in users in Sudan, where the conflict has displaced millions of people,” the business reported that its subscriber base increased by 1.6% to 288 million.

Given the higher demand in Nigeria despite the legal obstacles, MTN plans to increase its capital expenditures, which it expects would total between 28 and 33 billion rand for the entire year.