Libya updates October 29 , 2013 - huge bank heist of 54 million ( who in their right mind would have a van transfer that sum of money from Tripoli to Sirte with just one security vehicle accompanying the money van ? ) Despite the happy talk that the oil blockade was over , Shararia oilfield closed , Mellitah production cut in half with exports stopped due to ongoing protests !

Huge bank robbery ....



http://www.libyaherald.com/2013/10/28/massive-bank-heist-in-sirte/#axzz2jAH5I7mC

Massive bank heist in Sirte: Update

By Taher Zaroog.

Misrata, 28 October:

Thieves in Sirte have stolen LD 53 million that was being transferred to the town’s branch of the Central Bank of Libya in Sirte. According to the Libyan news agency LANA, $12 million in foreign currency was also stolen.

It said that 10 men in two vehicles and armed with light and medium weapons had intercepted the truck carrying the money from the airport at a crossroads in western Sirte. The money had been flown in from Tripoli. The thieves made off with the truck with the money inside.

According to a source there was only one security vehicle accompanying the truck and that those inside had felt unable to take on the ten armed men.

The cash is said to have been transferred to service retail banks in the area.

Libya gunmen steal $54m in bank van robbery

Heavily armed men make off with millions in several currencies after attacking central bank van in city of Sirte. Last Modified: 29 Oct 2013 00:21

Gunmen have attacked a central bank van in the Libyan city of Sirte, stealing $54 million in several currencies, the official Lana news agency reported. Monday's report said "10 heavily armed men" had made off with the funds, which were destined for the Sirte branch of the Libyan central bank and had been flown to the city from the capital Tripoli. Citing a source from the local branch of the central bank, LANA said that the gunmen stole "53 million Libyan dinars ($42 million)" and another $12 million in euros and US dollars. The gunmen attacked the van on the road between Sirte airport and the town itself, 500km east of Tripoli, LANA said, without saying if there had been any casualties. Only one security vehicle had been assigned to protect the van, and the agency said the guards "were unable to resist the 10 attackers." LANA quoted a security official in the city as saying the vehicles used in the robbery had been identified and that police were hunting the perpetrators. Wave of violence A city official contacted by the AFP news agency said he had no further details about the robbery but that two Sirte banks had been hit in July, with the robbers making off with $400,000. Gaddafi freed tens of thousands of convicted criminals in the early days of the 2011 rebellion, many of whom have formed powerful gangs that have taken advantage of a flood of weapons from the former leaders looted arsenal. Sirte, Gaddafi's home town and the place where he was captured and killed, has largely been spared the wave of violence that has swept the country since he was toppled. The government has called on the brigades of ex-rebels that overthrew Gaddafi to lay down their arms or join the security forces, but several militias have ignored its pleas and carved out their own fiefdoms across the vast, mostly-desert country. In a show of force, armed men earlier this month captured Prime Minister Ali Zeidan and held him for several hours before releasing him. Ten days later the head of an interior ministry anti-crime unit boasted he was behind the "arrest" and that he was "proud" of it.

Oil Industry blues......

Sharara oilfield in Obari closed by Tuareg protesters

By Houda Mzioudet,

Tripoli, 28 October 2013:

The management at Sharara oil field closed it yesterday evening because of security concerns after a number of locals from the nearby town of Obari staged a protest inside the field. The shutdown was advised by Petroleum Facilities Guards.  However, this evening, its reopening with 24 hours was predicted by the oil minister Abdulbari Al-Arusi who flew to the field to discussion the issue with supervisors.

The field is run by Akakus Oil, the joint venture between Spain’s Repsol and the National Oil Corporation.

He has been reported by the Libyan news agency LANA saying that he had discussed plans to secure the field with the Defence and Interior Ministry as well as with the Petroleum Facilities Guard. Arousi used the occasion to warn of the consequences of interfering with Libya’s main source of income.

Earlier a local Tebu man from Obari, Youssef Ali, told the Libya Herald that the protesters were mostly Tuaregs from the nearby area of Wadi Al-Hayat. They were demanding that they be given National ID numbers as well as that their language of be given official status in the new constitution.

“They are protesting against the marginalisation of Obari,” he added. “They used force to close the oilfield,” he claimed, adding that they had gone to the oil field with heavy weapons.

“The head of security gave them a deadline of 24 hours to leave”, he stated.

Sharara oilfield still closed despite ministerial visit

By Houda Mzioudet.

Tripoli, 29 October 2013:

The Sharara oilfield in Obari remained closed today despite Oil Minister Abdulbari Al-Arousi’s visit yesterday, according to the National Oil Corporation (NOC).

Arousi announced that pumping would resume within 24 hours, after Tuareg protesters, demanding their language be given official status in the forthcoming constitution, closed the port on Sunday.

The ministerial delegation, accompanied by NOC head Nuri Berrwin, met the oilfield director to discuss the repercussions of stopping oil production. It also held consultations with the Ministry of Defence and General Staff over a plan for the Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG), who apparently advised the shutdown, to secure the oilfield.

Responding to Tuerag concerns that the area was being marginalised, Arousi pointed out that there were plans to set up a branch of the Ministry and Oil and Gas, a refinery and the Institute of Training and Manufacturing of Petroleum Products in the Obari region, according to Libyan news agency LANA news agency.

The field is run by Akakus Oil, a joint venture between Spain’s Repsol and NOC. Officials at the oilfield are now awaiting further instructions from head of the PFG, pending decisions from the Government and the General National Congress, NOC media head Omar Al Emari told the Libya Herald.

The Sharara oilfield is located in southwestern Libya, 800 kilometres south of Tripoli, and has the capacity to produce an estimated 350,000 barrels per day (bpd).

Exports at standstill and production halved by Amazigh protest at Mellitah

By Tom Westcott.

Tripoli, 28 October 2013:

Exports from the Mellitah oil terminal have remained at a standstill for a second day and production at the complex is running at half capacity, according to an industry source.

Some 80 Amazigh from Zuawara gained access to the terminal, apparently via the sea, on Saturday night and stopped exports from the complex. They are demanding  more seats in the 60-member Constitutional Committee. Only two seats have been reserved for the Amizigh community.

The protestors are occupying part of the Mellitah complex, which is operated by Italian oil company ENI and the National Oil Company (NOC). They are preventing oil tankers from docking at the port. One ship, understood to be a Spanish vessel, is berthed at the terminal but remains only half loaded.

The Mellitah complex has the capacity to produce 160,000 barrels per day (bpd). It is not clear what production figures were before the protest but the source said that production had halved since the arrival of the Amazigh.

The gas export pipeline to Italy is still running as normal, the source confirmed to the Libya Herald. However, he said protestors were threatening to close the pipeline on Sunday if their demands were not met.

Local people, Mellitah staff, government representatives and tribal elders were all trying to negotiate with the protestors, the source added.