By Sami Zaptia.
Tripoli, 15 August 2014:
Tripoli Municipal Council and the National Oil Corporation (NOC) confirmed the arrival yesterday afternoon of the . . .[restrict]fuel tanker Anwar Al Naser at Tripoli port laden with 14 million litres of petrol.
This latest tanker arrives just after another oil tanker, Anwar Libya, had left Tripoli port. It had been docked since 7 August having arrived carrying 9 million litres of fuel.
The announcement will no doubt come as welcomed relief to Tripoli residents who have been enduring an acute fuel crises for over a month now and which has been made worse by the breakout of fighting by opposing militias in Tripoli that have led to the destruction of its main fuel depot.
On Wednesday, Brega Oil and Gas Company had announced that 1.8 million litres of fuel were delivered from Tripoli port to distributors in the city on 11 August.
The announcement stated that the total fuel delivered to distributors from 7 August to 11 August has reached 5.7 million litres. The daily average of fuel distribution for the five days was 1.147 million litres.
Referring to the continuing lack of petrol around the capital, Brega Company media coordinator Fathi Dahrobi had told the Libya Herald, that it was “a matter of security rather than a shortage of fuel.”
Many petrol stations are still closed and while at others there are dispiritingly long queues. There is some security but it cannot be guaranteed.
Earlier this week there was a clash at a petrol station in the capital’s Dreibi district when, according to an eyewitness, one group of militiamen tried to jump the queue but were stopped by another group which was providing security.
No-one was hurt in the subsequent brief shooting, but the petrol station closed. [/restrict]
