TRIPOLI, Aug 11 – Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) has warned that it could declare force majeure and stop operations at the Zawiya refinery if drone attacks on oil facilities in the city continue.
The warning came after the NOC reported a third drone attack on oil assets in Zawiya between Sunday and Monday.
The newest attack targeted an oil blending and filling plant operated by Zawiya Oil Refining Company. The drone landed near an oil tank and a pipeline network used to produce oils for the domestic market. No casualties or damage were reported.
However, a separate attack on Monday caused a fire at a fuel tank at the Zawiya refinery. Libya’s oil ministry said the tank, which belonged to Brega Petroleum Marketing Company and held about 4.5 million litres of gasoline, caught fire and later collapsed.
The ministry said several drone attacks had targeted the Zawiya oil complex, refinery and a desalination plant. No group has claimed responsibility, and authorities have not identified those behind the attacks.
The Zawiya refinery has a capacity of 120,000 barrels per day and is currently Libya’s largest operating refinery. It is also linked to the 300,000-barrel-per-day Sharara oilfield.
Earlier on Saturday, a drone crashed into an untreated naphtha tank at the refinery, causing a leak that workers managed to contain. Despite the attacks, two refinery engineers said on Monday that operations had continued without a shutdown.
