On 30 October, the NOC expressed “deep concern” as it announced the shutdown of the crude pipeline connecting oil fields in the Hamada region to the Zawiyya processing complex in the northwest, less than a week after it recovered from a two-day closure.
According to the NOC, an “armed group” closed the key valve just north of the town of al-Riyayna near Zintan. “The sudden and forced closure of the valve led to a sharp increase in pressure, forcing technical crews to halt pumping operations via the pipeline as of 12:30 AM last night,” the NOC said, adding that the measure was taken to ensure the “integrity of the pipeline and production facilities.”
The NOC warned that the continued closure of the pipeline, which disrupted supplies from the associated Hamada and Tahara fields, would “inevitably result in the loss of approximately 15,000 bpd of crude oil intended for the Zawiya refinery.”
While NOC did not name the perpetrators, it condemned the “violations and direct attacks,” urging the “relevant authorities, namely the Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG), to fulfil their mandated responsibilities and legal duties, including taking the necessary measures to secure pipelines, reopen the valve, and resume pumping operations as soon as possible.” On 1 November, the central command of the PFG issued a statement siding with the NOC in condemning the closure of the key valve and disrupting crude flows via the pipeline. The group said Libya was at a “sensitive and critical phase,” expressing “full rejection” of the “irresponsible” halt in operations at oil facilities or any disruption of oil and gas supplies. “We will not allow anyone to harm the resources of the Libyan people,” it said, describing the closure of the al-Riyayna valve by protesters as “an act of sabotage against the general interest of the state.”
