Waha Oil Co, a subsidiary of Libya’s National Oil Corporation, cut its output by 90,000 bpd for a week starting on November 24 amid planned maintenance on a pipeline. NOC stated that before the maintenance, Waha’s oil production stood at 286,000 bpd. In late October, A pipeline leak slashed Waha’s production by 200,000 bpd. Waha’s production makes up Libya’s flagship Es Sider grade, exported from the terminal with the same name.
Libya holds the largest oil reserves in Africa. It produced an eight-year high of 1.19 million bpd in March. However, output has trended downward slightly to an average of 1.13 million bpd in September. The oil ministry has said it plans to increase production to 1.4 million bpd by December and 1.6 million bpd by 2022. Analysts said such a target would rely on the government funding to NOC needed to maintain the country’s ageing oil infrastructure. The production target is lower than Libya’s peak output of about 1.75 million bpd in 2008.
