Libya hopeful of imminent oil export restart

摘要

Vienna—Libya’s oil minister Abdel Bari al-Arousi said Wednesday that the country’s idle oil export terminals could be back in operation by December 10 with supplies expected to return to normal levels a week after that. Libya’s oil sector has been paralyzed for almost six months as a result of protests and disputes between various militia and the Tripoli authorities, and its biggest oil export ports—Es Sider and Ras Lanuf—have been shut since the summer. Arousi’s forecast is not the first time Libyan government officials have said a return to pre-crisis operations was imminent, though to date no breakthrough has been achieved. Speaking ahead of OPEC talks in Vienna, Arousi said negotiations were under way to reopen the ports and get oil exports moving again. Once the ports were working again, export volumes would return to normal levels within a week, he said.