A Libyan state oil company has said it has been forced to shut down oil production amid political stalemate that threatens to resume armed conflict in the North African country, the Associated Press reported. The state-owned National Oil Corporation said yesterday that a group of people entered the Al-Phil deposit in the south of the country and stopped its work. It is not reported how many people were involved and whether they were armed. Meanwhile, tribal leaders from the country’s southern region announced in a video message about the closure of Al-Fil and demanded the removal of oil company chief Mustafa Sanala. They also called for a fair distribution of oil revenues in Libya’s three main regions. They also called on Prime Minister Abdel Hamid Dbeyba to hand over power to a government-appointed government to his rival, Fathi Bashaga. The National Petroleum Corporation has taken legal action that allows the company to be released from its contractual obligations due to extraordinary circumstances. It is not yet clear how many barrels Libya will lose due to the closure of the Al-Phil field. The country’s oil production is about 1.2 billion barrels a day. World markets are currently shaken by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has raised crude oil prices to more than $ 106 a barrel, the Associated Press reported.
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