Fire breaks out at Libya’s largest oil refinery

A fire broke out at a fuel storage tank at Libya’s largest oil refinery in Zawiya on Monday, with firefighters working to bring the blaze under control.

The National Oil Corporation (NOC) said the affected tank contained around 4.5 million litres of petrol and was directly targeted in an attack. The state-owned corporation declared its highest level of emergency and called for an immediate investigation.

Brega Petroleum Marketing Company, an NOC subsidiary, said the extent of the damage was still being assessed.

Located about 40km west of Tripoli, the Zawiya refinery has a crude oil refining capacity of around 120,000 barrels per day. It is also linked to the Sharara oilfield, which can produce about 300,000 barrels of crude per day.

Two engineers at the refinery said firefighters were battling the blaze but operations had not been suspended.

The incident came two days after a drone attack targeted a tank storing untreated naphtha at the refinery. The tank was damaged and naphtha spilled, but workers later brought the situation under control.

MT / SKS