LONDON: Opec, excluding Iraq and Angola, is set to pump slightly more oil in June because of higher shipments from some members including Iran and Algeria, a consultant said yesterday.
Opec’s 10 members subject to output limits are expected to pump 26.8mn bpd in June, up from a revised 26.7mn bpd in May, said Conrad Gerber, head of Geneva-based Petrologistics, which tracks tanker shipments.
The estimate, while showing rising output in some Opec countries, indicates top world exporter Saudi Arabia is keeping a lid on supply in spite of a jump in oil prices to $70 a barrel from around $50 in January.
Iran’s supply in June is set to rise by 50,000 bpd to 3.9mn bpd and Algeria is forecast to pump out 1.42mn bpd in June, up from 1.33mn bpd in May, because of higher exports, he said.
Supply from Saudi Arabia, Opec’s largest producer, is expected to dip to 8.65mn bpd from 8.74mn bpd in May, according to Petrologistics.
Including Iraq and Angola, production by the 12-member Opec is expected to fall to 30.3mn bpd in June from 30.5mn bpd in May.
A dip in exports from Iraq accounts for the bulk of the decline.
Nigeria, Africa’s top exporter, is raising supply slightly in June to 2.02mn bpd, from 1.98mn bpd the previous month, Gerber said.
Production in Nigeria has been hit by a spate of militant attacks on oil installations.
Opec, source of more than a third of the world’s oil, agreed to curb supply by 1.7mn bpd, or about 6%, last year in two steps. The second stage took effect from February 1.
Despite June’s rise from the 10 members party to the output curbs, output remains lower than when Opec started cutting production in November. Opec said the 10 were pumping 27.5mn bpd before the cutbacks began.
The exporter group is next scheduled to met in September to decide production policy. – Reuters |
