Engineers say two oilfields in south-east Libya have been shut down

Engineers at the fields said on Tuesday that two oilfields have stopped production, and another had its output reduced. This shows a plan announced on Monday to reduce production is in effect.

Although the eastern-based administration announced on Monday that the oilfields would be closed, neither the internationally recognised government of Libya in Tripoli nor the National Oil Corp, which controls Libya's oil resources, have confirmed this.

Khalifa haftar, the eastern Libyan military commander, controls most of Libya's oilfields.

On Tuesday, engineers from Amal and Nafoora said that production had been halted. Engineers from Abu Attifel reported a reduction in production. The east is responsible for the majority of the country's oil production.

Waha Oil Company, a subsidiary of NOC, said Monday that it intended to reduce production gradually and warned against a complete stop to Libyan production. It cited unspecified "protests" and "pressures", and another subsidiary, Sirte Oil Company also announced it would cut its output.

According to secondary sources, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) estimated that Libya produced about 1.18 million barges of oil per day during July. (Reporting and writing by Ayman Werfali, Nayera Abdallah, and editing by David Holmes).

(source: Reuters)