An oil source, who preferred to remain anonymous, told our source: “What is taking place is a settlement process in exchange for fuel supplies. This mechanism has been in place for nearly two years before the current management board of the corporation took office and was approved by a Cabinet decision. The current board, which inherited this mechanism, has officially communicated multiple times with the Cabinet, requesting a clear budget or financial allocation to purchase fuel and end the swap mechanism.”
The source added: “The swap process involves a settlement account for the value of fuel with entities to which the Oil Corporation exports crude oil, and which are capable of supplying the fuel required by the Libyan state. The settlement account is monitored by the Audit Bureau, the review department within the Oil Corporation, and an international firm that examines the account and provides regular periodic certificates on any violations.”
He continued: “The National Oil Corporation is legally tasked with processes related to fuel provision and crude oil export. However, from my expertise in the fields of oil, gas, and economics, I believe that under the current political circumstances, it is challenging to transition from commodity subsidies to cash subsidies. The simplest prerequisite for cash subsidies is strictness and fair implementation through supervision and monitoring mechanisms nationwide. I think this is difficult to achieve at present!
