TRIPOLI, July 17 (Xinhua) -- Libya's state-owned National Oil Corporation (NOC) announced Tuesday "force majeure" in the oil port of Zawiya in western Libya.
"National Oil Corporation has declared force majeure on crude oil loadings at Zawiya port, commencing on July 16, 2018. This is a result of reduced production at Sharara following the recent attack and kidnap of four Akakus company employees," NOC said in a statement.
The production in the field is limited only to supply a local refinery, but not enough for export, the corporation said.
"Employees' safety is always our first priority. This incident required us to shutdown and evacuate a number of stations. We have to prioritize local demand for fuel. For the time being all Sharara production will go to the refinery," said NOC chairman Mustafa Sanalla.
An armed group on Saturday kidnapped four engineers, three Libyans and one Romanian, from an oil field in southern Libya, a military source told Xinhua.
NOC said two of the kidnapped engineers were freed shortly afterwards.
No group has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping yet.
Sharara is Libya's largest oil field. It produces almost 270,000 barrels of crude oil per day, nearly one quarter of the country's daily oil production.
Following the 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Muammar Gaddafi's government, Libya has been suffering escalating violence and insecurity, as well as political division.
