Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) on 15 June said it had agreed to restore gas supplies to the Lifeco fertilizer plant at Marsa el-Brega which has the capacity to produce 850,000 t/y of urea and 120,000 t/y of ammonia. The resumption in supplies of gas feedstock follows the resolution of a financial dispute with NOC’s JV partner, Norway’s Yara.
Gas supplies to Lifeco were cut in January over what NOC said was Yara’s refusal to pay a combined $247mn debt to NOC and its Sirte Oil Company subsidiary which provides the gas (MEES, 1 February). As part of the deal, NOC will take over the marketing of urea and ammonia from Yara with “factory operations expected to restart shortly.” (CONTINUED - 161 WORDS)