Towards boosting its trade to help balance dwindling profits from mining, Glencore Plc has entered into a deal with Libya's state-run National Oil Corp. (NOC), to buy half of the oil Libya is presently exporting, a market source revealed.

Under the arrangement which started in September, Glencore will load and find buyers for all the Sarir and Messla crude oil exported from the Marsa el-Hariga port near Libya’s eastern border with Egypt.

As the two biggest ports; Es Sider and Ras Lanuf stay closed, the Marsa el-Hariga port, with exports of up to 140,000 b/d, has become Libya's main exporting terminal.

Libya still exports oil from other locations, including offshore platforms Bouri and Al-Jurf, and is planning to reopen its larger fields; El Feel and Sharara.

The country’s oil exports have risen to 1.6 million barrels per day. It kept production below, 0.5 million b/d all through the past year, due to battles between rival parties looking to control the country, as well as strikes and blockades by local tribes.

Several oil companies and refineries are unwilling to send vessels to load oil in the country due to the fear of long and costly loading delays and force majeure declarations.

As a matter of fact, NOC and Central bank, are amongst few of the institutions still functioning in Libya and both are faced with challenges from the east.

Earlier this year, the NOC debunked reports of an exchange of crude for Petroleum products with Glencore, stating that any arrangement that did not direct payments through its Central bank would be illegal, Reuters reports.