Ras Lanuf ( ( ar, راس لانوف , also: ''Ra’s al-Unūf'' )) is a

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...

town in northern

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...

, on the

Gulf of Sidra The Gulf of Sidra ( ar, خليج السدرة, Khalij as-Sidra, also known as the Gulf of Sirte ( ar, خليج سرت, Khalij Surt, is a body of water in the Mediterranean Sea on the northern coast of Libya, named after the oil port of Sidra or ...

. The town is also home to the

Ra's Lanuf Refinery The Ras Lanuf Refinery is a topping and reforming oil refinery in Ras Lanuf, Libya. It is part of a larger petrochemical complex also consisting of an ethylene plant, a polyethylene plant, plant utilities, and Ra's Lanuf Harbor. Until 9 March ...

, completed in 1984, with a

crude oil Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...

refining capacity of . The

oil refinery An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, liq ...

is operated by the Ra's Lanuf Oil & Gas Processing Company, a subsidiary of the state-owned

National Oil Corporation The National Oil Corporation (NOC; ar, المؤسسة الوطنية للنفط) is the national oil company of Libya. It dominates Libya's oil industry, along with a number of smaller subsidiaries, which combined account for around 70% the cou ...

. Additionally, the city houses the Ra's Lanuf petrochemical complex – a major oil terminal – and oil pipelines: the Amal–Ra's Lanuf, the Messla–Ra's Lanuf, and the Defa-Ra's Lanuf pipeline.

History

Classical

Ras Lanouf was part of the Greek Pentapolis colonies. The traditional western boundary of the Pentapolis lay at Arae Philaenorum. Some historians claim it is 40 km west of

El Agheila El Agheila ( ar, العقيلة, translit=al-ʿUqayla ) is a coastal city at the southern end of the Gulf of Sidra in far western Cyrenaica, Libya. In 1988 it was placed in Ajdabiya District; it was in that district until 1995. It was removed from ...

, while others place Arae Philaenorum near Ra's Lanuf, and the modern

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

commemorative arch featuring the Philaeni stood here before its destruction in 1973.

World War II

On 3 April 1941 there was a British war

communiqué A press release is an official statement delivered to members of the news media for the purpose of providing information, creating an official statement, or making an announcement directed for public release. Press releases are also considere ...

that in the North Africa Campaign in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

in the night of 1 April 1941 Allied bomber aircraft heavily attacked German/Italian motor transport at Ra's Lanuf and destroyed many vehicles.

Growth under Gaddafi

Beginning in 1984, a major

urban development Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of peop ...

program for Ra's Lanuf was initiated by the

Brega Brega , also known as ''Mersa Brega'' or ''Marsa al-Brega'' ( ar, مرسى البريقة , i.e. "Brega Seaport"), is a complex of several smaller towns, industry installations and education establishments situated in Libya on the Gulf of Sidra ...

and Ras Lanuf Higher Committee to accommodate employees of the nearby oil industries, and envisaged for 40,000 inhabitants. The general design of the town layout was to be linear, following the coast and allowing extensive views and easy physical connection with the sea from all parts of town. The town's structure was based on a functional hierarchy, containing three centers forming public zones with community facilities extending to the Mediterranean coast; these are in turn surrounded by high-rise housing blocks. A pedestrian route links different public, commercial, and recreational facilities to residential areas. The project was carried out by Devecon Engineers and Architects.

Libyan Civil War

On 4 March 2011 after heavy fighting, anti-Gaddafi Libyan rebels captured Ra's Lanuf. The rebel advance was halted in the Battle of Bin Jawad and a counter-offensive by government forces opened the second phase of the Battle of Ra's Lanuf. After a heavy bombardment from air, land, and sea the government forces retook the city on 10 March. On 27 March rebels retook control of Ra's Lanuf as part of a rapid advance as 24 hours earlier they had retaken the strategic towns of

and

Ajdabiya Ajdabiya ( ; ar, أجدابيا, Aǧdābiyā) is a town in and capital of the Al Wahat District in northeastern Libya. It is some south of Benghazi. From 2001 to 2007 it was part of and capital of the Ajdabiya District. The town is divided in ...

, but within a matter of days rebel forces retreated from the city once more in the face of a new government counter-offensive. On 23 August, rebels recaptured Ra's Lanuf from government loyalists and continued their advance towards

Bin Jawad Bin Jawad ( ar, بن جواد '), also known as ''Bin Jawwād'', ''Bin Quwad'' is a town with estimated 8,488 inhabitants in the Sirte District in Libya. It is approximately halfway between Benghazi and Misrata. The nearest settlements are Nofa ...

and

Sirte Sirte (; ar, سِرْت, ), also spelled Sirt, Surt, Sert or Syrte, is a city in Libya. It is located south of the Gulf of Sirte, between Tripoli and Benghazi. It is famously known for its battles, ethnic groups, and loyalty to Muammar ...

; however, sporadic fighting continued in Ra's Lanuf into September.

Administrative governance

Under the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...

, Ra's Lanuf was part of

Tripolitania Tripolitania ( ar, طرابلس '; ber, Ṭrables, script=Latn; from Vulgar Latin: , from la, Regio Tripolitana, from grc-gre, Τριπολιτάνια), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province o ...

under Italy after 1934, then occupied by the British as again part of Tripolitania. In 1983 it became part of the

Bin Jawad District Bin Jawad District, ( ar, جالو, Baladiyah Bin Jawwad) was one of the districts ('' baladiyah'') of Libya from 1983 to 1987. It lay in the northern part of the country bordering the Gulf of Sidra. Its capital was Bin Jawad. Under Italy it was ...

. Since 1987, it has been under the Sirte District.

Economy

Ra's Lanuf is an import center for the petrochemical industry. The

has a capacity of . It is a part of larger petrochemical complex consisting of an

ethylene Ethylene (IUPAC name: ethene) is a hydrocarbon which has the formula or . It is a colourless, flammable gas with a faint "sweet and musky" odour when pure. It is the simplest alkene (a hydrocarbon with carbon-carbon double bonds). Ethylene ...

plant, a

polyethylene Polyethylene or polythene (abbreviated PE; IUPAC name polyethene or poly(methylene)) is the most commonly produced plastic. It is a polymer, primarily used for packaging ( plastic bags, plastic films, geomembranes and containers including b ...

plant, plant utilities, and the Port of Ra's Lanuf. The Port of Ra's Lanuf consists of a small harbor, operated by the Veba Oil Company and RASCO. Its primary activities include loading crude oil and oil products. It has a maximum draft of 22 meters and is about west of the Benina International Airport. Ra's Lanuf is the terminus of the Defa-Ra's Lanuf oil pipeline and the Majid-Nafora-Amal-Ra's Lanuf oil pipeline. Ra's Lanuf has two airports: Ra's Lanuf Oil (Code:HLNF) and Matratin (Code:FR3803). Ra's Lanuf is to be a station on the new national railway system of Libya. In addition it is to be a construction base for the section to be built by Russian engineers, with a port for the delivery of supplies. The port will be connected to the base by a branch line.

Nearby cities and towns

Sidra Sidra may refer to: * Sidra (name) Places * Gulf of Sidra, a body of water in the Mediterranean Sea on the northern coast of Libya *Sidra, Libya, a Libyan port *Sidra, Sokółka County, a village in Poland * Gmina Sidra, a Polish administrative ...

( west) *

( east) *

Qaryat Bishr Qaryat Bishr is a Mediterranean coastal town on the Gulf of Sidra in central-northeastern Libya. It is in the Al Wahat District of the Cyrenaica Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika ( ar, برقة, Barqah, grc-koi, Κυρηναϊκή ��παρχί ...

( east) *

( east) * Zella ( south) * Marada ( south)

Notes

External links

GPCO Website اللجنة الشعبية العامة للمالية (= General People's Committee of Finance)
* http://www.RasLanuf.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Ras Lanuf Port cities and towns in Libya Gulf of Sidra Populated places in Sirte District Populated coastal places in Libya Tripolitania Ports and harbors of Libya