Libya’s state oil company said Thursday it was resuming full oil production, nearly two months after halting operations at two of its main fields amid a political crisis.
The National Oil Corporation said in a statement that it would resume production at the Sharara and El-Feel oil fields , as well as exports from Es Sider, the country’s largest port. In August, the company declared “force majeure, ” a legal manoeuvre that allows a company to walk away from its contracts due to extraordinary circumstances.
As part of the review of the force majeure situation, the NOC confirmed in its statement that it “can resume crude oil production operations and export operations to its customers.”
The National Oil Corporation had previously blamed the Fezzan Movement, a local protest group, for the shutdown. The shutdown comes as rival authorities in the country are locked in a dispute over governance of the central bank, which distributes the country’s oil revenues.
In August, the United Nations warned that the country was on the verge of even greater instability because of the conflict. But the problem was resolved in recent days when parliament appointed a new governor to the bank.
Libya produces more than 1.2 million barrels of oil per day, and Sharara is the country’s largest field, producing up to 300,000 barrels per day.
The oil-rich country has been gripped by political turmoil since a NATO-backed uprising toppled and killed Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. Since then, Libya has been divided between rival administrations in the east and west, each backed by militias and foreign governments.