Head of Libyan National Oil Corporation resigns

The head of the Libyan National Oil Corporation, Farhat Bengdara, has resigned on health grounds after three years at the helm of the state oil firm, an NOC official told S&P Global Commodity Insights.

"Chairman Bengdara resigned for some medical research and the PM of GNU approved the resignation," the official said in a statement.

Prime Minister Abdul Hamid al-Dbeiba, who leads the internationally recognized Government of National Unity in Tripoli, has replaced Bengdara with his deputy, Masoud Suleman, who sits on NOC’s board, on an interim basis.

In a subsequent statement on social media, the NOC said Bengdara's "urgent health conditions prevented him from performing his duties and responsibilities in the best possible manner".

"The Corporation affirms its full commitment to continue working to ensure the stability of the oil sector and enhance its role as a fundamental pillar of the national economy," NOC said.

Oil shutdowns

Bengdara’s appointment in 2022, replacing Mustafa Sanalla, sealed an agreement between Dbeiba and eastern warlord Khalifa Haftar, ushering in a period of rare stability in the oil sector. Crude production has risen to 1.19 million b/d, the highest since March 2021, according to the Platts OPEC Survey from Commodity Insights, and international companies have resumed production and exploration activities in the country.

However, the sector has been blighted by protests, isolated fighting and shutdowns in recent months.

In late 2024, Libya’s eastern faction closed oil fields and ports across the country for weeks -- including the 300,000 b/d Sharara and 90,000 b/d El-Feel fields -- in response to efforts by Dbeiba’s government to replace the governor of Libya’s Central Bank, which doles out lifeblood oil revenues. The shutdown plunged output to 580,000 b/d in September, according to the Platts survey.

Bengdara also saw minimal progress on his stated aim of getting Libyan oil output to 2 million b/d by 2028 through dozens of greenfield and brownfield projects, despite some small field startups recently.

NOC has also faced ongoing allegations of fuel smuggling and corruption throughout Bengdara’s tenure

Meanwhile, Tim Eaton, senior research fellow at Chatham House, said in a recent interview that fuel-for-crude swaps by the NOC had cut revenue to the Central Bank in 2024, "effectively creating a black hole in the public finances".

Representatives for the outgoing NOC boss could not be reached for comment.

Libya's light, sweet crude is sold mainly into Europe. Its key Es Sider crude grade was last assessed by Platts, part of Commodity Insights, at a $1.40/b discount to Dated Brent on Jan. 16.

The North African country has been politically chaotic since the fall of Moammar Qadhafi in 2011 and while violence has largely stopped, Libya has been split between rival governments in the west and east since 2014.