Reuters reported Libya has lost $30 billion due to 10 months of protests at oilfields and export terminals. The government is unable to control militias and armed tribesmen in different regions thus causing disruptions in oil supplies and halt in oil production.
A wave of protests at oil facilities has reduced Libya’s oil output to less than 200,000 barrels a day down from 1.4 million bpd last June before the strikes started. Importantly, regular oil deliveries yield revenues of $1 billion per month.
State oil firm National Oil Corp (NOC) announced that it might be forced to use crude from its two offshore oilfields, so far unaffected by protests, to feed a domestic refinery. That could mean Libya stops exporting oil for the first time since 2011.
Currently, oil and gas exports are the only source of revenue for the country's budget as Libya has no sizeable industrial production outside the oil sector.
Clashes at oilfields were mainly driven by the discontent of ethnic minority groups who demand autonomy and a fair stake in export profits. It concerns the Eastern region of Libya.
The protests are part of wider turmoil in the North African country since the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.