TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Libya's oil ministry has opened an office in the eastern city of Benghazi, the cradle of the Libyan revolt, as part of the government's efforts to decentralise and improve administration in the North African country.
The National Oil Corporation (NOC) said in a statement Oil Minister Abdulrahman Ben Yazza officially opened the office in Benghazi on Wednesday.
The Tripoli-based NOC said the office is the first ministry office to open in the city.
Libya's east, home to most of the country's oil, was starved of cash during Muammar Gaddafi's 42-year rule, and calls for federal rule have been fuelled by long-standing complaints it has been deprived of its fair share of wealth.
In March, a group of civic leaders in Benghazi said they would run their own affairs, defying the government in Tripoli which is struggling to assert its authority on a country awash with weapons.
The east's Arabian Gulf Oil Company was first in Libya to restart production after last year's uprising and for a period marketed its own oil to international firms.
Libya, which holds Africa's largest crude reserves, is nearing pre-war oil production levels, currently pumping around 1.5 million barrels per day.
(Reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Gary Hill)
