LIBYA: Deputy Oil MInister Omar Shakmak says gas exports to Italy suspended after violence at Mellitah complex in which one person was killed

Record ID: 335384

  • Title: LIBYA: Deputy Oil MInister Omar Shakmak says gas exports to Italy suspended after violence at Mellitah complex in which one person was killed
  • Date: 3rd March 2013
  • Summary: TRIPOLI, LIBYA (MARCH 3, 2013) (REUTERS) WIDE OF NEWS CONFERENCE CAMERA OPERATOR FILMING (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) LIBYA'S DEPUTY OIL MINISTER, OMAR SHAKMAK, SAYING: "At dawn today there were two groups who were working together on security [at Mellitah], one group was made up of Zintan brigades and the other group was from the area and city of Zuwara. These two groups clas
  • Embargoed: 18th March 2013 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Libya
  • Country: Libya
  • Topics: Crime,Politics,Energy
  • Reuters ID: LVA2SLXR9O3TOTJSTZZ3YKU2YV54
  • Story Text: Libya has stopped gas exports to Italy from its Mellitah complex after fighting on Saturday between militias, Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) and Italy's Eni said on Sunday (March 3).
    Libya's defence ministry sent security personnel to secure the complex, about 100 km (60 miles) west of the capital Tripoli, to ensure exports could resume soon, said Abdufattah Shagan, chairman of Mellitah, an NOC-Eni joint venture.
    Mellitah supplies Italy with gas through the Greenstream pipeline, which at full capacity pumps at least 8 billion cubic metres. Italy gets most of its gas from Algeria, Russia and Norway, with Libya providing about 10 percent.
    "Gas exports have been completely halted," NOC deputy chairman Mustafa Sunalla told Reuters on Sunday.
    Saturday's firefight began after an argument between former rebel fighters from nearby Zuwara and others from Zintan over who should guard Mellitah, security officials said, adding the clashes were now over.
    Deputy Oil Minister Omar Shakmak told a news conference in Tripoli one person was killed and several injured. Khaled Bukrayat, a member of Zuwara Media centre which compiles local news, said seven people were seriously injured.
    "At dawn today there were two groups who were working together on security [at Mellitah], one group was made up of Zintan brigades and the other group was from the area and city of Zuwara. These two groups clashed and weapons were used," said Shakmak.
    "After a few hours, there was greater force and there were clashes that led there to be a number of injured and according to the information that I received, one death was recorded," added Shakmak.
    The minister said gas production and exports to Italy had been halted.
    "Gas is produced according to the agreement and it goes along the gas pipelines to Europe via Italy and this, of course, has been completely stopped. Gas products are produced by the Mellitah factory which are butane and propane, and the production of these has been been halted. In addition to this, gas is considered the fuel that is needed at electricity power stations in southern Tripoli and at Zawiyah," said Shakmak.
    It was the latest violent disruption to the energy industry in Libya where protests have shut down oil-export terminals in recent months and in the North African region following January's bloody hostage-taking at an Algerian gas plant.
    Thousands of former rebels who fought to overthrow former leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 have been employed in a protection force to look after Libyan oil and gas installations.
    But in recent months activists and local militia have disrupted operations in Libya's main industry, pursuing goals such as better living conditions or more regional autonomy. In July they forced the closure of three major oil terminals.
    This has hurt OPEC member Libya's oil output, which returned to close to pre-war levels of 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd) faster than analysts expected after the 2011 conflict.
    Eni said gas flows from Mellitah to Gela, Sicily, had been halted and Italy's industry ministry had been alerted.
    Libyan Army Chief of Staff Yousef al-Mangush told the news conference that the military were expected to secure the complex in the next few hours.
    "An agreement has been reached that all these groups will leave, there is an army force ready to get in and secure the facility, the agreement was supposed to start at 10am this morning, but something happened and it delayed. Right now there are meetings happining and all the indications shows that an agreement will be reached in the next few hours for the army forces to take over the facility and secure it," said al-Mangush.
    Mellitah has two plants - one treating oil and condensate from the Wafa fields and another for gas and condensate from the Sabratha offshore platform, according to Mellitah's website.
    A senior Libyan oil official said production at both Wafa and Sabratha had been affected by the Mellitah shutdown.
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