Dana Gas now producing 70,000 barrels of oil per day in Kurdistan - KURDISTAN 24

A gas processing plant run by Dana Gas in the Kurdistan Region

December 15, 2018

John J. Catherine

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Middle East's largest regional private sector natural gas company has announced that, as a result of a previous ramp-up of production in the Kurdistan Region, it reached 70,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) in late November and has either sustained or exceeded that amount since then.

"Production in excess of 70,000 barrels oil equivalent per day is a great achievement for Dana Gas," said Chief Executive Officer Patrick Allman-Ward in a statement released on Thursday.

"The increase in production will help offset the lower realised hydrocarbon prices that have impacted the oil industry in the last quarter and support growth in our revenue and net profit figures for the full year 2018 and beyond."

Dana Gas is an independent gas company headquartered in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates that has been active in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq since 2007 when it entered into agreements with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to develop its substantial gas resources.

Security Issues Continue to Plague Libya's Oil-Supply Growth - RIGZONE / BLOOMBERG

Wednesday, July 18, 2018Salma El Wardany

(Bloomberg) -- Just as Libya resumes oil exports from recently shuttered ports, an attack on its largest field is setting back progress yet again.

An incursion by gunmen into the Sharara field on Saturday and the kidnapping of workers there forced the National Oil Corp. to cut production and put a ban on exports. It’s the latest in a string of security incidents that have hobbled Libyan shipments despite repeated attempts to restore flows in the politically divided nation.

“This incident required us to shut down and evacuate a number of stations,” NOC Chairman Mustafa Sanalla said in a statement. The kidnappers released two of the four abducted workers later the same day but still hold two others.

Libya's oil output revival thwarted by pipeline explosion - WORLD OIL / BLOOMBERG

DEC/26/2017

SALMA EL WARDANY

CAIRO (Bloomberg) -- Libya’s oil industry revival suffered a setback Tuesday after an explosion at a pipeline carrying crude to the OPEC nation’s biggest export terminal. Oil rallied as a result.

Production will drop by 70,000 to 100,000 bopd after the explosion, the state-run National Oil Corp. said in a statement. The pipeline, operated by Waha Oil Company, carries crude to the Es Sider terminal. The blast occurred 81 mi south of Sidra.

WoodMac: What's behind the boost in Libya's oil production? - WORLD OIL

OCTOBER/20/2017

EDINBURGH -- Libya's oil production has increased steeply from August 2016’s low point of below 300,000 bpd to around 850,000 bpd at present, passing the 1-MMbpd barrier in July. But Wood Mackenzie believes Libya may now be reaching its near-term production limits and future growth will be gradual.

Libyan Oil Output Is Set to Rebound as Biggest Field Restarts - RIGZONE / BLOOMBERG

Wednesday, October 04, 2017Salma El Wardany & Saleh Sarrar

(Bloomberg) -- Libya’s oil output, hampered by sporadic shutdowns at fields and ports, is on track to resume its recovery as the OPEC nation’s biggest crude deposit started pumping after a three-day forced halt.

The Sharara field re-opened on Wednesday and is restoring production, the state producer National Oil Corp. said on its website. NOC lifted force majeure at the field as of Wednesday and is able to resume delivering Sharara crude to customers, it said in an emailed statement. NOC Chairman Mustafa Sanalla said Monday on Libya TV that the nation’s daily output will reach 1 million barrels within days of the field’s re-opening.

OPEC’s ‘Problem Children’ Are Holding Down Oil Prices - THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Monthly crude-oil production, percentage above or below October 2016 levels

Sept. 22, 2017 12:33 p.m. ET

Benoit Faucon and Summer Said

Rising output in strife-torn Libya and Nigeria is threatening the cartel’s bid to cut off oil supplies and balance the market
VIENNA—The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is scrambling to contain output from its strife-torn members Libya and Nigeria, where surging production could threaten to derail the oil cartel’s efforts to withhold crude supply and raise its price.

Libya and Nigeria were exempt from OPEC’s agreement last year to join with Russia and other producers to cut about 2% of the world’s oil production. The countries’ oil industries at the time were crippled by civil unrest and weren’t expected to recover soon.

Both have since struck deals with militants, allowing the spigots to be turned on again.

Libya's oil disruptions widen as two more fields halt output - WORLD OIL / BLOOMBERG

AUGUST/27/2017
SALMA EL WARDANY & HATEM MOHAREB

CAIRO (Bloomberg) -- Two more oil fields in Libya are being closed after an armed group took over pipelines to both deposits, further disrupting the OPEC nation’s plan to boost crude production.

El Feel, or Elephant, stopped production, Wessam Al-Messmari, an office manager for the Petroleum Facilities Guard that is protecting the field, said Sunday by phone. State-run National Oil Corp. declared force majeure at the deposit, according to a person familiar with the situation who asked not to be identified because the information isn’t public.

The Hamada oil field will gradually stop pumping through Monday because of the pipeline closing, Arabian Gulf Oil Co. spokesman Omran al-Zwai said Sunday. Force majeure was also declared on Hamada, he said. Force majeure is a legal clause protecting a party from liability if it can’t fulfill a contract for reasons beyond its control. An armed group closed the pipelines to Hamada and El Feel, according to a person familiar with the situation.

Shell loads oil in Libya for first time in five years - WORLD OIL / BLOOMBERG

AUGUST/20/2017
GRANT SMITH AND SALMA EL WARDANY

LONDON and CAIRO (Bloomberg) -- Royal Dutch Shell Plc, the world’s largest oil trader, is said to have loaded its first crude from Libya in five years over the weekend, adding to evidence of the OPEC nation’s comeback.

The cargo on Saturday is for 600,000 bbl of crude from the Zueitina port, according to two people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified because the information is private. A Shell spokesperson declined to comment on the shipment, but said the company’s Shell International Trading & Shipping “has a history marketing Libyan crudes. We welcome new business opportunities with Libya’s National Oil Corp.”

Mustafa Sanalla, chairman of the NOC, didn’t answer phone calls seeking comment.

Libya Gets Better at Keeping Oil Flowing as Industry Stabilizes - RIGZONE / BLOOMBERG

Thursday, August 17, 2017

Salma El Wardany

Libya's getting better at resolving stoppages in its oil industry, underpinning a growing perception that the OPEC member is closer to becoming a stable producer again.
(Bloomberg) -- Libya’s getting better at resolving stoppages in its oil industry, underpinning a growing perception that the OPEC member is closer to becoming a stable producer again.

That’s because of the duration of the incidents. While in prior years protests could shutter fields for months and years, now the stoppages are being resolved within days and barely hindering flows. Sharara, Libya’s biggest field, had several short disruptions this year, including two this month, after being closed for more than two years. Mustafa Sanalla, chairman of state-run National Oil Corp., was quick to visit Sharara this week to resolve the latest dispute, offering to revise security measures.

Platts: OPEC July hits 2017 high of 32.8mn bpd on Libya recovery - OIL REVIEW AFRICA

Wednesday, 09 August 2017 06:01

Libya's continued dramatic recovery from civil strife pushed OPEC's July output to yet another 2017 high, with the bloc producing 32.82mn bpd, according to the latest S&P Global Platts OPEC survey

Libya, exempted from OPEC production cuts that began January 1, averaged 990,000 bpd in July, up 180,000 bpd from June. Fellow exempt member Nigeria averaged 1.81mn bpd, a 30,000 bpd increase on the month, according to the survey. Not including Libya and Nigeria, compliance among OPEC's 12 members with quotas under the production cut agreement remains robust at 114 per cent, down slightly from 116 percent in June, based on an average of January through July output. That illustrates the challenge OPEC faces in rebalancing the market through its output deal, which also involves 10 non-OPEC producers, as the two exempt countries' recoveries, tenuous though they may be, threaten to undo a large portion of the group's collective cuts.

Libya's ascendant oil boss poses challenge for Saudi Arabia, Russia - WORLD OIL / BLOOMBERG

By ANGELINA RASCOUET AND SALMA EL WARDANY on 7/19/2017

LONDON (Bloomberg) -- Libya’s rebounding oil output is undermining the supply curbs masterminded by Saudi Arabia and Russia. But any pleas for the OPEC member to exercise restraint will probably be resisted by the technocrat overseeing the North African nation’s turnaround.

Production has climbed to a four-year high of 1.1 MMbpd, with Libya adding output since April that’s equivalent to more than a quarter of the cuts agreed by OPEC and its allies.

The restoration of Libyan oil supply has put the spotlight on National Oil Corp. Chairman Mustafa Sanalla, whose influence has waxed in a country divided between a weak United Nations-backed government in the west and a military strongman in the east. When OPEC meets with Russia in St. Petersburg this week, the 56-year-old petrochemical engineer will speak for a nation that’s causing as much angst as U.S. shale drillers.

Libyan oil output exceeds 1 MMbpd for first time in four years - WORLD OIL / REUTERS

Libyan exports before the outbreak of the civil war

JUNE/30/2017
AHMAD GHADDAR

LONDON (Reuters) - Libya's oil production has risen to 1.012 MMbopd, a Libyan oil industry source told Reuters on Friday, topping 1 MMbpd for the first time in four years.

State-owned National Oil Corporation (NOC) had targeted reaching 1 MMbpd by the end of July.

Output has been helped by an interim deal with Germany's Wintershall to resume production amid a contract dispute.

On Thursday, the same source said production had been fluctuating between 950,000 bpd and close to 1 MMbpd due to technical and power generation problems.

He expected production to stabilize at the higher end of that range "very soon".

Libyan crude gushes into tankers as nation's output accelerates - WORLD OIL

JUNE/28/2017
RUPERT ROWLING

LONDON (Bloomberg) -- Libyan oil shipments are poised to hit their highest level in at least three years in the latest sign the North African country is managing to sustain a production revival.

Exports are on course to reach about 715,000 bpd this month, the most since July 2014, when Bloomberg began monitoring Libyan shipments, tanker-tracking data show. With relatively limited capacity to process that crude in its domestic refineries, the shipments have been moving in lock-step with production.

Libya’s surging output is a key factor helping to undermine the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ efforts to reduce global supply and increase oil prices. The group met last week in Vienna to discuss how to deal with rising production in Libya and Nigeria -- both OPEC nations exempt from supply curbs -- rather than deepening output cuts by other members. U.S. production climbing to the highest since August 2015 has further derailed OPEC’s efforts.

Recovery of Libya’s largest oil field boosts OPEC country's output - WORLD OIL

5/31/2017
Hatem Mohareb, Saleh Sarrar, Salma El Wardany

DUBAI (Bloomberg) -- Libya’s biggest oil field boosted production, allowing the OPEC nation to pump crude at the highest level since October 2014.

Crude from Sharara field rose by 25,000 bpd to 250,000 bbl, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because they aren’t authorized to speak to the media. Libya’s output rose to 827,000 bpd after the increase in output from Sharara, Mustafa Sanalla, head of the state-run National Oil Corp., said in a text message.

The revival in Libyan crude production comes after the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allied suppliers agreed on May 25 to extend a deal to cut production to battle a global oversupply until the end of March. The recent increase in Libyan output may undercut OPEC’s strategy to re-balance the market and prop up prices.

Wintershall says in talks with Libya to resolve oil export dispute - HYDROCARBON PROCESSING / REUTERS

May 10/2017
Reporting by Aidan Lewis; Additional reporting by Ahmad Ghaddar in London and Vera Eckert in Frankfurt; Editing by Susan Thomas and Greg Mahlich

TUNIS (Reuters) -- Libya's oil production is running at above 800,000 bpd for the first time since 2014, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) said on Wednesday, but a commercial dispute with German oil firm Wintershall has shut in a further 160,000 bpd.

Libya's output could reach between 1.1 MMbpd and 1.2 MMbpd if political obstacles were removed, the NOC said in a statement.

"We are able to produce an average of 1.1 MMbpd to 1.2 MMbpd over the rest of this year, but for this to happen our oil must flow freely. A national effort is required," NOC Chairman Mustafa Sanalla said.

OPEC's burden grows, as Libyan output reaches highest mark since 2014 - WORLD OIL / BLOOMBERG

5/8/2017

Salma El Wardany 

CAIRO (Bloomberg) -- Libya is pumping the most oil since October 2014 as the OPEC member restores output amid progress in mending the nation’s political divisions. The increase adds pressure on the world’s biggest producers who just signaled they may extend production cuts as oil slumps.

The North African country’s production has reached about 780,000 bpd, according to a person familiar with the situation who asked not to be identified for lack of authorization to speak to the media. Libya was producing about 700,000 bpd at the end of April, Jadalla Alaokali, a board member at state producer the National Oil Corp., said then.

Libya's Oil Output Rebounds as Sharara, El Feel Fields Restarted - BLOOMBERG

30 April 2017, 1:51pm EEST
Salma El Wardany

• OPEC member pumping more than 700,000 barrels a day: Alaokali
• Biggest field Sharara at 216,400 barrels daily after restart

Libya’s crude production rebounded to more than 700,000 barrels a day as the OPEC member’s biggest oil field and another deposit in its western region resumed pumping after a halt.

The Sharara field is currently producing 216,400 barrels a day, while the El Feel, or Elephant, deposit is pumping 26,500 and is expected to boost output further, Jadalla Alaokali, a board member at the National Oil Corp., said Sunday by phone. Crude from Sharara started flowing to the Zawiya refinery after the port of Zawiya re-opened last week following a three-week closure. El Feel, idled since April 2015, also restarted last week.

Oil slides to one-month low as Libya restarts Sharara field - WORLD OIL

4/27/2017JESSICA SUMMERS & MARK SHENK

NEW YORK (Bloomberg) -- Oil declined to a one-month low as Libya reopened its biggest field and as the market weighs increases in U.S. product inventories and crude output.

Futures fell as much as 2.9% in New York. Crude from the Sharara field in Libya has started flowing to the Zawiya refinery, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. Both U.S. gasoline and distillate stockpiles rose by the most since January last week, according to an Energy Information Administration report Wednesday. Nationwide crude output is at the highest level since August 2015.

Eni-operated Libyan oil field said to reopen after two-year halt - WORLD OIL / BLOOMBERG

April/20/2017
Saleh Sarrar

TRIPOLI (Bloomberg) -- Libya’s El-Feel oil field, operated by a venture between Eni SpA and the state producer, reopened after a two-year halt in operations that crimped the OPEC nation’s output, according to a person familiar with the situation.

The field, also known as Elephant, re-opened on Wednesday, said the person, who asked not to be identified because of a lack of authorization to speak to media. It hasn’t resumed pumping oil yet because of an electricity outage, Petroleum Facilities Guard Brigadier Idris Bukhamada said by phone. Authorities are working to resolve the power stoppage soon, he said.

NOC: Libya's Wafa Oil And Gas Field Reopens, Force Majeure Lifted - RIGZONE / REUTERS

Wednesday, April 12, 2017

Reporting: Ahmed Elumami; Writing: Aidan Lewis, Patrick Markey; Editing: Susan Thomas

TRIPOLI, April 12 (Reuters) - Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) has lifted force majeure on production from the Wafa field after an armed group reopened oil and gas pipelines leading to the Mellitah terminal, the company said in a statement on Wednesday.

Production of oil, gas and condensates had been interrupted at Wafa by a shutdown that started on March 26 near the town of Nalut. Wafa is operated by Mellitah Oil Co, a joint venture between NOC and Italy's ENI.

The reopening would allow Mellitah to restore production of about 450 million cubic feet of gas, 9,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil, and 7,500 bpd of condensate, NOC said.