As the wave of Middle Eastern protests arrived in Libya, the country’s long-standing ruler Colonel Muammar Gaddafi cracked down on the population last week with a brutal show of force.
This prompted energy companies to halt production in Libya, the world’s 12th-biggest exporter of oil. These included Repsol, Spain’s biggest oil and gas company, and ENI, Italy’s state-controlled oil and gas group. Others, including Royal Dutch Shell and BP, evacuated expatriate employees.
