Libya’s National Oil Corp, or NOC, has become embroiled in a new political battle as it seeks to defend its role as both policy setter and regulator in the oil and gas sector. NOC chairman, Mustafa Sanalla rejected plans from the internationally recognized government in Tripoli which would divide the state-owned company’s powers. The UN-backed Presidency Council (PC) issued an order Monday dividing the authority of Libya’s oil ministry between the prime minister’s office and the NOC. It also stripped Sanalla of his position as oil minister, a role he inherited by default in 2014 when nobody was nominated to fill the position. “I have asked the Presidency Council to withdraw its recent resolution. It has exceeded its authority,” Sanalla said in a statement late Monday on the NOC’s website. Under the order, the prime minister’s office will assume the role of a traditional oil sector regulator — signing […]