Libya kicks off construction of oil refinery near an oilfield

Share
1 min read
Chairman Mustafa Sanalla speaks during the signing ceremony for the oil refinery and gas factory project in south Libya, at the building of the National Oil Corporation in the capital Tripoli on October 3, 2021. (Mahmud Turkia/ AFP)
Share
  • An annual income of $75 million is expected from the project, said state oil company head Mustafa Sanalla.
  • The refinery will be built near Al-Charara oil field, which produces an average of 300,000 barrels of oil a day.

TRIPOLI: Libya on Sunday said work has begun on the construction of an oil refinery in the south of the conflict-ridden desert country.

The project will cost between $500 million and $600 million and become operational within three years, according to the head of Libya’s state oil company Mustafa Sanalla.

He said an annual income of $75 million was expected.

Libyan leader Abdelhamid Dbeibah, speaking at a ceremony in the capital Tripoli, said: “This project is important, the effective start of construction of a refinery in the south.”

The refinery will be built near Al-Charara, a major oil field in the Oubari region, which produces an average of some 300,000 barrels of oil a day.

Announced in the early 1980s, the project for a refinery in southern Libya had been put on hold for years before being revived in 2017.

Libya, which has the most abundant oil reserves in Africa, has been trying to emerge from a decade of chaos since the fall of Moamer Kadhafi’s government in 2011.

Libya was gripped by violence and political turmoil in the aftermath of the NATO-backed uprising against Kadhafi.

In recent years, the country has been split between two rival administrations backed by foreign powers and myriad militias.

SPEEDREAD


Today's Headlines

The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.

By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

MORE FROM THE POST