Libya’s Central Bank chief warns of collapse after oil blockade losses
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The halt of Libya’s oil production and exportation amid the civil war could cause the country’s economic collapse, the governor of the Tripoli-based Central Bank of Libya warned on Tuesday.
Al-Saddiq al-Kabir told Tripoli’s parliament that shutdown of the country’s oil production and exportation since 2013 has cost Libya some $180 billion in losses, which he called “a bullet in the head” to the country’s economy.
Al-Kabir said Libya needs to produce 1.7 million barrels per day to compensate for current spending levels.
He also said the country’s debt had reached 270% of gross domestic product, Hifter’s blockade has cost Libya at least $9 billion in revenue, the Tripoli-based Central Bank said last month.
The country is currently producing roughly 120,000 barrels per day, compared to more than a million before the blockade began in January.
Al-Kabir criticized the eastern Libyan movement on Tuesday, saying 15 billion Libyan dinars printed in Russia have propped up the Tobruk-based government.
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