A series of strikes had already taken the shine off Libya’s rapid post-Revolution production rebound. Although crude output rose rapidly to 1.55mn b/d by May last year it has not topped this level since and fell well below this for December and January as Libya was hit by a series of strikes and protests (MEES, 18 January).
Although drilling activity continues to tick up – the number of active rigs rose to 16 for January from 15 in December and 10 for mid-2012 (see graph) most IOCs continue to delay a full return to exploration. State firm NOC’s plans to raise output to 1.72mn b/d by March now have no chance of being hit (MEES, 9 November 2012). (CONTINUED - 1891 WORDS)
