Libya’s NOC shuts down half of Sirte Basin after IS attacks

The beheading of local guards and the kidnapping of foreigners at the Ghani field by units allegedly part of Islamic State (IS), and their destruction of facilities at this and other fields, has obliged National Oil Corporation (NOC) to shut down and abandon most of the south-west Sirte Basin. Local oil workers are now reluctant to work at locations in the desert unless more Petroleum Facilities Guards (PFGs) with better equipment are deployed. If the attacks continue, there are two main ways that the situation could deteriorate.