OPEC Crude Oil Output Rose to 30.05M Barrels per Day in October
Press release from the issuing company
Tuesday, November 8th, 2011
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' (OPEC) crude oil output rose by 50,000 barrels per day (b/d) in October to 30.05 million b/d, as recovering production inLibyaoffset drops inSaudi Arabiaand elsewhere, a just-released Platts survey of OPEC and oil industry officials and analysts showed.
The survey estimated a 260,000 b/d month-on-month increase in Libyan production, up from just 90,000 b/d in September to 350,000 b/d in October.
"Even since the end of October, there continues to be hopeful news about the rising supply ofLibyaoil. For example, Platts reported last week thatFrance's Total soon expects to bring the Mabruk field online soon, adding another 40,000 to 50,000 b/d in supplies," saidJohn Kingston, Platts global director of news. "However, the first rush of new supply should not be plotted as a straight line to gettingLibyaback to its full capacity. History shows oil output often doesn't return to its pre-strife level after periods of turmoil likeLibyahas seen."
Kuwaitalso showed a small increase of 40,000 b/d to 2.6 million b/d.
The biggest single drop came fromSaudi Arabia, where output dropped by 140,000 b/d to average 9.6 million b/d in October.
InNigeria, volumes were down by around 50,000 b/d. Shell lifted a force majeure onBonny Lightcrude oil but declared one on Forcados crude exports after an attack on a major pipeline. The company lifted the Forcados force majeure onNovember 1after repairing the line.
Angolan volumes were unchanged despite the ramp-up in flows from Total's Pazflor field.
Output fromIraq's biggest producing field, BP's Rumaila, was sharply curtailed for several days after attacks on the southern pipeline system. But, with northern exports up, the outage had little impact on the country's total crude volumes.
OPEC is next scheduled to meet onDecember 14inVienna.Iran, which currently holds the OPEC presidency, will likely press the group to endorse output allocations agreed in late 2008 when oil prices were tumbling amid a deepening global economic recession. Thegroup'sJune 8meeting failed to reach agreement on production policy.