An official with Libya’s Sirte Oil Co. in the country’s rebel-held east says production is down by 90 per cent.
Sirte Oil is a subsidiary of the national oil company in eastern Libya. Ahmed Jerski said Tuesday the company is producing about 9,500 barrels per day. Normal output is about 95,000 barrels per day.
The unrest in eastern Libya is hurting the country’s vital oil sector. Rebels are fighting supporters of Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi in the most violent of the uprisings that are sweeping the Arab world.
The fighting is estimated to have cut Libya’s normal output of about 1.6 million barrels per day by more than half. The decline has stoked supply fear and sent global oil prices surging well past $100 per barrel.
