An armed group shut the main crude pipeline valve connecting western Libya’s Hamada field to the Zawiya refinery. Libya’s National Oil Corporation confirmed the incident on Thursday.
The corporation received a report stating that gunmen closed the 18-inch pipeline valve in the Riyayna area. This infrastructure links the Hamada and Tahara fields to the refinery.
The forced closure triggered a sharp increase in operating pressure. Technical teams halted pumping operations through the pipeline at 12.30 am on Thursday to protect the line and production facilities.
Crude supplies from all connected fields were suspended. The corporation warned that a prolonged closure would result in the daily loss of 15,000 barrels of crude destined for the Zawiya refinery.
This disruption creates a direct threat to oil installations and the steady flow of crude to the refinery. Such stoppages carry potential repercussions for the wider Libyan economy.
The National Oil Corporation condemned the closure. It called on relevant authorities, specifically the Petroleum Facilities Guard, to secure the pipeline, reopen the valve, and permit the resumption of pumping immediately.
Officials urged authorities to shield oil installations and transportation lines from attacks that threaten production stability and national oil resources.
This incident follows a similar closure on 22 October, when armed men shut a valve on the same Hamada to Zawiya crude pipeline.
On 21 September, armed members of the Petroleum Facilities Guard closed a crude oil valve at the Sharara field in southwestern Libya. That action caused a sharp decline in production at one of the country’s major oil fields.
The corporation later reported that the disruption at the Sharara field resulted in 95 million dollars in financial losses.
Petroleum facility guards have long demanded higher monthly salaries amid similar protests by workers across several sectors in Libya.
