Libya is currently producing 1.6 million b/d of crude oil and hopes to raise output to 1.7 million b/d by the end of the first quarter of 2013, slightly later than scheduled because of technical issues, National Oil Company chairman Nuri Berruein said Wednesday.
The previous forecast of reaching that output level by the end of 2012 was made before the extent of damage to Libyan infrastructure sustained during the 2011 civil war was fully known, and might not be attainable, he told reporters on the sidelines of the North Africa Oil and Gas Summit in Vienna.
Before crude output could be increased further from its current level of about 1.6 million b/d, technical problems with some offshore wells would need to be fixed and a damaged pipeline repaired, Berruein said.
NOC said in its latest update that Libya produced an average 1.606 million b/d in the week to October 22 and exported 1.12 million b/d in the week of October 10-17.
Libya's gas production stood at about 2.5 Bcf/d, significantly below the country's nominal capacity of about 3 Bcf/d due to technical problems related to damaged facilities, he added. He forecast that repairs might be completed by mid-2013.
Libya was targeting output capacity of 2 million b/d of oil and 3.5 Bcf/d of gas within three to five years, Berruein said. It would aim to reach the "short-term" oil target sooner rather than later, in 2015, he added.
The country's oil refining throughput was running near current capacity and was satisfying most of Libya's domestic requirements for fuel with the exception of gasoline, Berruein told conference delegates.
Libya was seeking international partners to invest in refining projects aimed at expanding domestic gasoline and diesel production, he said.
The country's current refining capacity stands at 380,000 b/d. OPEC member Libya produced an average 1.6 million-1.7 million b/d before last year's rebellion against Moammar Qadhafi, when nearly all production was shut in at the start of the year. Output was restored to near normal levels far quicker than independent analysts had expected.
