Oman’s daily average production of crude oil exceeded 1mn barrels per day (bpd) mark during the first two months of 2022, up by more than 8 per cent in comparison to daily average output recorded in the same period of last year.
Oil output during January – February period increased to 1.03mn bpd compared with 954,300 bpd in the corresponding period of 2021, the data released by National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) showed.
The sultanate’s total oil production in the first two months of 2022 grew by 8.2 per cent to 60.9mn barrels compared to 56.3mn barrels in the same period of last year.
Of the total production, crude output jumped by 11.5 per cent year-on-year to 48.01mn barrels during January – February period, while condensates output slightly decreased 2.4 per cent to 12.9mn barrels during these two months.
Exports to China jump 21%
Oman’s oil exports grew by more than 18 per cent during January – February period of 2022 to 53.4mn barrels compared with 45.1mn barrels recorded in the corresponding period of 2021.
The sultanate’s total oil exports for the full year 2021 had inched up 0.7 per cent to 288.9mn barrels from 287mn barrels in 2020.
Exports to China, the biggest buyer of Oman’s crude, accounted for over 87 per cent of the sultanate’s total oil exports during the first two months of this year. Total exports to China surged 21.2 per cent at 46.5mn barrels during January – February period of this year compared to 38.4mn barrels in 2021.
On the other hand, exports to India decreased by 7.6 per cent to 5.2mn barrels in the first two months of 2022 from 5.7mn barrels in the same period of 2021.
Oman crude prices climb higher
The average price at which Oman sold its crude during first two months of 2022 surged by 63.5 per cent to US$76.7 per barrel against US$46.9 per barrel recorded in the same period of 2021. The highest monthly average price of Oman crude was recorded in January at US$80.3 per barrel, while the average price for February stood at US$73.1 per barrel, the NCSI data showed.
With global oil prices continuing to rise amid Russia – Ukraine conflict, Oman crude prices recently rose to their highest level in more than eight years. Oman crude price on Friday stood at US$112.3 per barrel (for May delivery) at the Dubai Mercantile Exchange.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) last week called on the OPEC+ group of oil-producing nations to help ‘relieve the strain’ on oil markets, while warning that the world faced the biggest shock to oil supply in decades.
The outbreak of war in Ukraine has sent oil prices up sharply and led to major economies, such as the US and Canada, sanctioning Russia by banning imports of oil.
With the threat that supplies of Russian oil could be cut even more, “there is a real risk that markets tighten further and oil prices escalate significantly in the coming months” as the world enters its peak demand season, the IEA said as reported by AFP.
Source: Muscat Daily