Forces still loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi fought rebels in Tripoli, extending a conflict that looked earlier close to conclusion after rebels swept into Tripoli in tandem with an uprising within the city.
Western powers, backing the disparate opposition to Qaddafi, have moved ahead with plans to support a new administration with which they hope to exploit Libya’s oil wealth. They renewed calls for the 69-year-old autocrat to surrender.
“We have good people working in the oil sector since the 50’s,” Farhat Omar Bin Guidara told the Dubai-based channel.
“I think 3 to 6 months will be enough to return to oil production,” he added.
Bin Guidara said in May he was joining the rebels seeking to overthrow Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi.
Bin Guidara said that of the country’s $168 billion in foreign currency assets, $104 billion was with the central bank, $460 million with the Libyan investment fund and some $30 billion or more in United States and European treasury bonds.
The rest was spread over special funds, investment funds and foreign loans, he added.
Libya will be able to restart some oil output soon, in a few months, although it will take as long as 18 months to reach the pre-war level, the country’s former top oil official Shokri Ghanem said on Monday.