08 Aug 2020; MEMO: The National Oil Corporation (NOC) announced that Libya’s losses have amounted to about $7.9 billion since the beginning of 2020 due to the closures of oil installations by General Khalifa Haftar’s militia, according to a statement reported by a Libyan TV channel.
The latest estimates regarding losses in this sector were announced by the NOC on 21 July, at around $7.24 billion.
Haftar’s militia and tribes loyal to the eastern forces, with Emirati support, have closed oil installations and fields since last January.
On Thursday, the NOC welcomed the US decision to impose financial sanctions on: “A network of smugglers, which contributed significantly to the destabilisation of the country.”
The NOC also confirmed that it will: “Continue to monitor all smuggling operations and continue to submit its communications and reports to the Office of the Public Prosecutor and the Security Council sanctions committee and follow up on legal procedures to hold those involved in these illegal acts accountable.”
On Thursday, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of Treasury imposed sanctions on three Libyans and a Malta-based company for their involvement in the smuggling of Libyan oil.
The list of sanctions which was published on the Department of Treasury’s website includes Faisal Al-Wadi, Nour Al-Din Miloud Misbah, Masbah Mohammed Wadi and Al-Wefaq Company Ltd, in addition to the Maraya ship that is used to transport smuggled cargo.
