On 15 December, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) declared a state of force majeure and emergency of the third degree (maximum) after a number of tanks at the Zawiyya Refinery were severely damaged during the early morning hours, which led to the outbreak of fires. This incident was caused by gunfire during clashes between armed groups in the vicinity of the refinery. The NOC appealed to the Government of National Unity (GNU) to ‘intervene to resolve these clashes and eliminate sedition, in any form, given the great danger it poses to the lives of civilians in the event that the refinery tanks continue to be exposed to similar damage’.
Later in the day, the General Emergency Committee of the Zawiyya Oil Refining Company announced that all fires and leaks have been contained, and thus announced the end of the state of emergency.
The same day, the Brega Petroleum Marketing Company announced that its firefighters contributed to managing the crisis at Zawiyya. Brega declared that its fuel warehouse in Zawiyya is operating ‘normally and is completely stable’, and that supplying resumed to the distribution companies and their affiliated stations.