Oil question: Libya returns to the market
24 September 2020
This national oil Libya announced the resumption of oil production in safe areas. OPEC countries are preparing to tighten cuts to stabilize supply and demand in the market.Libya's national oil company said this week that it is resuming oil production in safe areas. The country expects oil production to rise to 260,000 barrels per day in the near future. Earlier, Libya, as a member of OPEC, was exempted from oil production in accordance with the agreement of the Petroleum Exporting Organization.
On Monday, OPEC oil prices fell by about 5% to $ 42 per barrel. International analysts note that this happened due to the return of Libyan barrels to the oil products market. Before the introduction of restrictions on oil production for the OPEC countries, Libya produced about 1.2 million barrels per day - more than 1% of world production.
The Libyan oil company announced in a statement on Monday that exports would begin on Wednesday and that oil would reach the market within 72 hours. As a first step, it is planned to resume supplies from the oil terminals of Marsa El Hariga and Brega. At the same time, it is noted that oil operations will be resumed only in areas without a military presence.
International investment bank Goldman Sachs noted that the return of Libya as an oil supplier cannot affect the market recovery, and Libyan oil will be offset by a reduction in other OPEC applications.
Libyan production is expected to increase by 400,000 barrels per day by December. At the moment, OPEC countries are closely monitoring actions to resume oil production in Libya. Depending on the speed of the country's oil sector, it responded in line with the demands of balancing global supply and demand.