Libya’s oil output has fallen to 700,000-750,000 bpd from normal levels of 1.6 million bpd as most foreign oil workers have taken flight, according to Shokri Ghanem, the head of Libya’s state-owned oil company.

Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, has boosted production to 9 million bpd as it steps in to meet increased demand from consumers hit by the cutback in Libyan exports. Another Indian refiner said his company was offered higher volumes by Saudi Arabia. “We have decided not to raise Saudi volumes as we do not import crude from Libya,” the source said. China’s Unipec — one of the biggest single lifters of Libyan crude — has so far declined Saudi Arabia’s offer of more crude and is not buying extra barrels to replace lost Libyan supplies, trading sources said earlier this week. Given high international prices — which are near 2-year highs around $116 per barrel — Unipec’s parent company Sinopec plans to use stockpiles and adjust the grades of crude used in refineries to maintain processing runs.

BPCL is India’s second-biggest state-run refiner and operates a 240,000-bpd refinery in Mumbai as well as a 190,000-bpd refinery in the southern Indian state of Kerala, run by subsidiary Kochi Refineries Ltd. It also owns a majority stake in a 60,000 bpd refinery in northeast India.