Libya's National Oil Corp. Threatens Force Majeure as Armed Guards Blockade Sharara Pipeline and Zawiya Refinery

The board of Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) must decide in the coming days whether to declare force majeure across its western operations, a legal maneuver that would freeze export contracts and halt domestic fuel distribution. The decision follows a physical blockade by the Petroleum Facilities Guard—the very state-backed militia paid to protect the infrastructure—which shut down a critical pipeline valve and blockaded the Zawiya refinery.[1][2][3]

The physical reality of the blockade centers on valve No. 7 in the Hamada area, which controls the flow of crude on the pipeline linking the 300,000-barrel-per-day Sharara field to the coast. Members of the Petroleum Facilities Guard closed the valve and subsequently blockaded the gates at the Zawiya Oil Refinery and the Al-Burayqa Oil Marketing Company, preventing shift changes for technicians and halting operations.[1][3]

The immediate operational impact has been severe. The blockage caused pressure to build in the pipeline, forcing Sharara's output to fall from its normal capacity to an estimated 100,000 to 105,000 barrels per day. The NOC was forced to shut down one of the refining units at Zawiya, reducing cumulative production by 942,376 barrels over a five-day period through Friday, costing the state approximately $95 million in direct financial losses. Production losses on Thursday alone amounted to 222,014 barrels.[1][4]

This marks a distinct escalation from the aerial bombardments that struck the Zawiya complex in August. Instead of external drone strikes, the disruption is now internal, executed by the guards stationed at the gates. The NOC stated that the closures posed "technical, operational and safety risks to the oil complex and could damage facilities and equipment and disrupt refining and fuel supply operations."[3]

The guards' demands are administrative but carry massive economic weight. The Petroleum Facilities Guard is demanding to be transferred financially and administratively from Libya's defense ministry directly to the NOC payroll. They have given a one-week deadline and threatened to expand the blockade to 3 additional fields—Wafa, Al-Khamsa, and El Feel—if their demands are not met.[5]

Representatives from Abdelhamid Dbeibeh's Tripoli-based government have attempted to negotiate with the guards. Libyan political researcher Ahmed Orabi noted that the sector has faced repeated disruptions, stating that the latest shutdown "could further threaten the continuity of production at the field and potentially lead to a force majeure declaration." Analysts view the blockade as a bargaining chip in the wider power struggle between the western government and the Haftar family in the east.[4][6]

If the NOC invokes the force majeure clause, it shields the corporation from liability for missed international deliveries but effectively cuts off the state's economic lifeline. It would also disrupt the import and distribution of refined petroleum products to the domestic market, risking severe fuel shortages across western Libya.[1][3]

The NOC has warned that a complete halt of operations at the Zawiya complex is imminent if the valve remains closed. The corporation has appealed to security agencies to intervene, but with the guards themselves leading the blockade, the mechanism for reopening the pipeline without conceding to their demands remains unclear.[1][3]