Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) has restarted oil production from the El-Sharara oil field, bringing an end to a two-month protester blockade of the facilities, Reuters news agency reports. 

The field had been blockaded since the end of October by Tuareg tribesmen in the south of Libya, a minority community that has been demanding greater local powers.

The country’s total output is currently about 286,000 barrels a day (b/d), down from 1.4 million b/d in June 2013. The resumption of production at El-Sharara could raise output levels by another 60,000 b/d initially before the field reaches its full capacity of 300,000 b/d. The field supplies the Zawiya refinery and export terminal in the west of the country.

However, disruptions to Libya’s oil and gas facilities continue. The latest incident has involved demonstrators blocking a pipeline from the Wafa field to the Mellitah Oil & Gas facility in the west of the country.

Ouptut from fields in the east of Libya is still restricted, as the key export terminals remain shut. The most notable of these are the 450,000-b/d El-Sider, 250,000-b/d Ras Lanuf and 150,000-b/d Zueitina terminals.