Armed Clashes Shut Down Zawiya Oil Refinery Near Tripoli, Libya

Libya’s largest operating oil refinery, the Zawiya Oil Refining Company’s Zawiya refinery, halted operations after armed clashes erupted in the city of Zawiya, about 40km west of Tripoli on the Mediterranean Sea, with the company saying the clashes “resulted in the fall of several heavy-calibre shells in multiple locations within the company’s premises.”

“Armed clashes in Libya halt the largest oil refinery”

Africa For Press

The Zawiya Oil Refining Company said the situation “necessitated the immediate implementation of emergency measures, including the complete shutdown of the refinery” and that it moved oil tankers away from the port after areas of the complex were hit by heavy shelling.

Africa For Press

The refinery’s capacity was described as about 120,000 barrels per day and it is connected to the Sharara oilfield, which can produce about 300,000 bpd, while the company said it was linked to the public interest and the security of the nation and its citizens.

The National Oil Corporation said “staff working in the facilities, oil installations and the Oil Institute in the city of Zawiya are safe and in good health” and that all employees, workers and students at the institute had been evacuated.

The clashes in Zawiya began after forces from the Tripoli government’s Joint Security Room began a large-scale operation against the hideouts of criminals, wanted people and outlaws in the city, according to The National.

Libyan Red Crescent branch in Zawiya reported it had received numerous distress calls from citizens as “a state of anxiety and panic is spreading among citizens due to the tense situation and the sounds of clashes,” while the Libya Herald said no injuries or deaths had been officially reported at the time of publication.

Al Jazeera

Qatar news agency said the Zawia Security Directorate announced, in cooperation with the Joint Security Chamber and security agencies, a broad security operation targeting the wanted and lawbreakers, as part of a plan to enhance security and stability and enforce state authority.

The Anadolu Ajansı account said city notables and elders intervened and that “there is no official, precise casualty toll,” while it added that Makhtar Hanish said he could confirm so far the death of two people inside their homes.

The Zawiya Oil Refining Company called on “all official state authorities to intervene swiftly and keep armed conflicts away from vital facilities” to protect workers and residents of nearby areas and to ensure the safe continuation of operations within the oil complex.

Al Jazeera reported that the National Oil Corporation and Zawiya Refining Company announced a “precautionary halt” to operations, evacuated employees from the oil complex and port, and said fuel supplies would continue as normal.

Anadolu Ajansı said the fighting stopped in the northern area of Zawiya after intervention by notables and elders, and it quoted Hassan al-Mughairebi saying “There are other arrangements in the coming days including outreach to the warring parties to try to calm the situation further and to prevent a recurrence of the conflict.”

Africa For Press described the refinery’s production capacity as about 120,000 barrels per day and said it is linked to the Sharara oil field in the Murzuq Basin, which produces about 300,000 barrels per day, framing the shutdown as a direct threat to livelihoods tied to the refinery’s operations.