The Dutch government has frozen around €3bn of Libyan assets, the NOS reported on Wednesday. The move is in line with sanctions imposed by the United Nations and the European Union.

Among those affected is the joint venture Yara in Sluiskil. Yara, a multinational based in Norway, extracts energy, natural minerals and nitrogen from the air and turns it into products for the agricultural and industrial sectors. It is 50% owned by the National Oil Corporation of Libya and the Libyan Investment Authority, says the NOS.
Yara has an ammonia production facility in Brega which has been closed down. A spokesman refused to confirm to the NOS that the facility’s Dutch bank account had been blocked but admitted Yara had been hit by the international sanction.
In February, the Volkskrant reported that Libyan state oil firm Tamoil and oil and gas exploration firm Verenex both have bases in Ridderkerk. The NOS does not say whether these too have been affected by the sanctions.
The NOS does say that the total of the frozen assets is exceptionally high.