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Closed valve shuts down El Sharara
LIBYA
LIBYA’S National Oil Corp. (NOC) said last week that it had suspended production at the El Sharara oil eld because of equipment problems.
e shutdown disrupted shipments of crude oil to the Obari thermal power plant (TPP), which was then unable to ensure steady supplies of electricity to the natural grid.
The state-owned company explained its decision by stating that it had lost access to the Zawiya export terminal, which lies within the Hamada area in western Libya. It said it had declared force majeure on oil from El Sharara a er a valve on the pipeline that connects the eld to the terminal was found to be closed late in the evening of July 31.
NOC blamed the incident on “unidenti ed perpetrators,”sayingitdidnotknowexactlyhow the valve had been shut.
It also stated that one of its subsidiaries, AkakusOilOperations,hadtriedtore-openthe link to the terminal. is attempt failed because of interference from members of “a local armed
group,” the company said.
NOC added that it was attempting to negoti-
ate with the band in the hope of restarting pro- duction soon but did not elaborate.
is is not the rst time that El Sharara, which produces around 290,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil, has gone o ine.
NOC suspended production on July 19, a er an unnamed group of people blocked a valve along the pipeline to Zawiya. It then resumed production on July 22, a er the company was able to re-open the valve.
Mustafa Sanala, the chairman of the com- pany, said that the latest closure demonstrated the undesirable consequences of attacks on oil and gas infrastructure.
“ is latest incident only serves to highlight the fragility of our security environment and total disregard for the impact of such acts on the livesofeverydayLibyans,”hewasquotedassay- ing in a statement that was released by the NOC on August 1.™
COMPANY NEWS
Siemens Gamesa doubles interim profits
GLOBAL
SIEMENS Gamesa increased interim revenues and almost doubled its pro ts in the rst nine months of its 2019 scal year as it posted record quarterly orders, particularly from the o shore wind sector.
Revenues between from October 2018 to June 2019, the rst nine months of the compa- ny’s nancial year to September, rose by 12% to €7.28bn ($8.1bn), while net income was 97.7% higher at €88m ($97.7m). In the third quarter from April to June, it logged €4.7bn ($5.2bn) of new turbine orders, a 42% year-on-year increase, driven particularly by a strong performance in new o shore markets, which partially compen- sated for lower pricing in its order backlog.
Its order book now stands at €25.1bn ($27.9bn), an 8% y/y increase, while orders in the last 12 months rose by 2.2% y/y to €12.3bn ($13.7bn).
e company said that record orders meant that it had covered 98% of its revenue guidance for the whole 2019 nancial year by the 9-month mark.
“Commercial activity remained sound dur- ing the period, supported by strong growth in
all business units, particularly new o shore mar- kets such as Taiwan,” the turbine maker said in a statement.
Despite pro ts almost doubling, the company noted that a number of factors had held back net income. ese included: persistant lower pricing in the order backlog; emerging market volatility and challenges at some onshore projects.
However, improvements in productivity and higher y/y sales volume helped to drive pro ts up, the company explained.
Looking ahead, the company said: “Although short-term headwinds temporarily hamper group margins, Siemens Gamesa’s long-term prospects remain solid thanks to a record back- log, geographical and business diversi cation and one of the most competitive product port- folios, both onshore and o shore.”
Siemens Gamesa said it was positive about its long-term prospects despite a complex short- term industry environment.
Average annual wind installations are set to roughly double until 2040, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), and the company is con dent of continued expansion.™
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 31 07•August•2019