(New York) Oil prices soared on Monday, spurred by the shutdown of two major production sites in Libya, in a market already on the rise due to discussions around a European embargo on Russian exports.
Posted at 3:18 p.m.
The price of a barrel of Brent crude from the North Sea for delivery in June gained 1.30% to end at 113.16 dollars, its highest closing level since the end of March.
As for the barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the main American variety, with maturity in May, it came close to 110 dollars in session and took 1.17%, to 108.21 dollars.
“The immediate concern today is the loss of 500,000 to 800,000 barrels of Libyan crude,” said Robert Yawger, head of energy futures at Mizuho Securities. “We can’t afford to lose a single barrel right now. »
The National Oil Company of Libya (NOC) announced on Saturday the closure of the Zouetina terminal (north-east), under pressure from a group of men considered close to the government in the east of the country, which is demanding the executive in place in Tripoli to cede power to him before the holding of elections.
At the other end of Libyan territory, in the southwest, another armed group has obtained the cessation of operations on the al-Charara oil field, which provides about a quarter of Libyan production of black gold.
Since the fall of the Muammar Gaddafi regime in 2011, Libyan oil sites, wells or terminals, have been regularly forced to close by armed groups, which thus make them an instrument of political pressure.
The interruption of part of Libyan exports comes in a market already strained by the prospect of a possible European embargo on Russian exports.
The European Union is working on the total suspension of its oil purchases from Russia, but does not plan to achieve this for “several months”, European sources told AFP on Friday.
“It’s a big leap forward,” commented Robert Yawger. “This could push prices up even further once the first details are announced. It would take a lot of barrels off the market. »
For the analyst, oil was also driven by strong demand for distillates. Domestic fuel thus came close to 4 dollars per gallon (3.78 liters) in the United States on Monday, a threshold that it has not reached since the beginning of March.