By Sami Zaptia.
London, 27 December 2017:
The National Oil Corporation (NOC) has confirmed news of an explosion yesterday on the Zaggut to Es-Sider oil pipeline without confirming the cause of the explosion. The pipeline connects the oilfields to Sidra oil terminal and is operated by the Waha Oil Company. The NOC expects production losses of 70,000 to 100,000 barrels/day.
The Corporation said that early investigations have revealed that the explosion occurred on the line 15 km north of Marada town and 130 km south of Sidra.
The Waha investigators had arrived at the site to deal with the resulting fire, the NOC added. It also said that the affected area had now been isolated at the nearest isolating valve, while assistance is arranged from teams based in other oilfields.
The NOC also revealed that Waha had immediately diverted production to the Samah pipeline.
However, the NOC did not confirm the cause of the incident – which has been reported as a terror attack. It stated that it ‘‘continues to investigate the causes of the explosion and is closely monitoring developments’’.
