Colombia's Cano Limon Oilfield Stops Production After Attacks

Crude production at Colombia's Cano Limon oilfield was halted on Friday after a series of pipeline attacks by leftist rebels prevented operator Occidental Petroleum Corp from moving oil to port, oil industry sources said.

The field's pipeline, which moves crude from the country's northeast to the Caribbean, has been shut since Nov. 17 because of bombings the military attributed to the National Liberation Army (ELN) rebels.

"The oil cannot be moved because the pipeline is down. The storage capacity at Cano Limon is full and Occidental was obliged to start the gradual halt of the wells," an oil industry source told Reuters.

Cano Limon, in Arauca province along the border with Venezuela, produces around 50,000 barrels per day. The 485-mile (780 km) pipeline has the capacity to transport up to 210,000 barrels of crude daily.

Officials from Occidental were not immediately available for comment.

The ELN regularly attacks oil installations despite coming peace talks with the government. This year, attacks against Cano Limon have led to the loss of 22,000 barrels of crude, according to state oil company Ecopetrol.

(Reporting by Luis Jaime Acosta; Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb)