Libya oil engineers say output normal despite blockade threat

BENGHAZI, Libya, Sept 4 (Reuters) – Engineers at the Libyan oil ports of Es Sider and Zueitina said on Saturday that production was normal despite the announcement by a group calling themselves people of the oil crescent region that they were blocking exports.

The group said in a video message, standing in front of an oil facility, that their demands included National Oil Corporation (NOC) chief Mustafa Sanallah leaving his position.

Blockades of oil output or exports have frequently cut Libya’s normal production of about 1.3 million barrels per day, sometimes at specific fields or ports, but also more widely.

Last year, forces aligned with the eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar blocked oil exports for months, almost entirely cutting the main source of Libyan revenue.

This week, the oil minister in the interim government said he was suspending Sanallah, the latest step in a dispute over control of the energy sector. However, Sanallah rejected the move. (Reporting by Ayman al-Warfali in Benghazi, writing by Angus McDowall, Editing by Angus MacSwan)