Libya resumed production at the key Waha oil field during the week of Oct. 10, bringing overall production to 580,000 barrels per day (Mbbl/d), a senior Libyan oil official said on Oct. 18.

The OPEC member country's production has been crippled for several years by an on-and-off blockade of its largest export terminals, militant attacks by groups including Islamic State, and the lack of a unified government.

The Waha Field, operated by the Waha Oil Co., is one of the main contributors for the major Es Sider export grade of oil. It is the first Es Sider field to resume and was producing 50 Mbbl/d as of Oct. 18. Output used to be about 330 Mbbl/d pre-war, but some infrastructure has been damaged and now capacity is lower.

The output is being redirected to the Ras Lanuf export terminal instead, due to limited storage, according to the official, who declined to be identified.

The Es Sider port now only has a storage capacity of 1.2 MMbbl vs. its pre-war level of 5 MMbbl after being badly damaged by fighting with Islamic State.

The Es Sider grade will eventually be split between the two ports to avoid bottlenecks as output increases.

The ports of Ras Lanuf and Es Sider were among the facilities blockaded from December 2014 until July of this year by the Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG) over payment disputes. After a deal was brokered with the PFG, the terminals were then seized by the Libyan National Army under eastern commander Khalifa Haftar in September.

Libya's state oil firm, National Oil Corp., decided to resume operations with Haftar still in control. Ras Lanuf exported crude from storage in September and exports of the Es Sider grade are expected to resume during October.

Exports of the Amna grade, usually out of Ras Lanuf, will be rerouted to the port of Zueitina to be exported along with the Zueitina and Bu Attifel grades.

The country's overall production target of 900 Mbbl/d by year-end 2016 hinges on the restart of its major western oil fields, El Sharara and El Feel. Otherwise, it will peak at a range between 650 Mbbl/d and 700 Mbbl/d.

Libya has been torn apart by civil war since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in October 2011. The North African country used to produce about 1.6 MMbbl/d before the unrest, and briefly came close to those levels again after Gaddafi's death during a period of relative peace.