Rebels demanding autonomy for eastern Libya said today they had made progress in talks with the central government on reopening key oil ports that they closed to exports last July.
A rebel spokesman said a first port might reopen as early as next week, raising hopes of an end to the nine-month blockade which has slashed Libyan oil exports from 1.5 million barrels a day to just 250,000 in a massive blow to the economy.
The prospects of a return of Libyan supplies to the market prompted a sharp fall in world oil prices. Brent North Sea crude for May shed USD 1.16 to stand at USD 104.46 a barrel in midday London deals.
Yesterday's meeting in the rebel-held port of Brega came two weeks after US Navy SEALs seized a tanker loaded with rebel oil in international waters in the Mediterranean, effectively ending their hopes of exporting crude in defiance of the central government.
The Tripoli authorities on Monday released three rebels who had been detained on the tanker in a bid to advance the negotiations.
"We met yesterday (Wednesday) with a government delegation headed by interim finance minister Marajaa Ghaith and we reached agreement on several points," said rebel spokesman Ali al-Hassi.
"The government gave a positive reception to the issues that we raised," he said, adding that the first of the five main export terminals held by the rebels could be reopened early next week.
The Tripoli authorities denied that there had been any direct talks with the rebels, insisting in a statement late today that the negotiations had been conducted through intermediaries from the region's powerful tribes.
Neither side gave any details of the agreement under discussion.
But a source close to the negotiations said the rebels were demanding a referendum on restoring the autonomy that the eastern Cyrenaica region enjoyed for the first 12 years after Libyan independence in 1951.
They were also demanding full back pay for their men, who were employed as security guards at the oil terminals before launching their blockade.
The eastern oil terminals were a key battleground in the NATO-backed uprising that toppled and killed veteran dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011, changing hands several times before the rebels finally captured them.
The source said that the talks were "serious" and that, if they bore fruit, it was proposed that the Zueitina export terminal be the first to reopen.
