A walkout by thousands of Kuwaiti oil workers entered its second day on Monday, slashing production by over 60 percent as the government looks abroad to recruit foreign employees.
“To all workers in the oil sector… the strike continues,” the Kuwait oil workers union said on Twitter.
The OPEC member’s crude production dropped from 3.0 million barrels per day to 1.1 million bpd, and refining output dived to 520,000 bpd from 930,000 bpd due to the strike.
Spokesman for Kuwait National Petroleum Co. (KNPC) Khaled al-Assoussi said Monday that Kuwait was still exporting crude oil and refined products.
He said on his Twitter account that three refineries were operating in accordance with an emergency plan at 55 percent of their capacity.
The cabinet on Sunday described the strike as “illegal” and called for legal action against the workers union.