OPEC raises oil demand estimate despite $120.30 per barrel price

[News_Editor]

OPEC raises oil demand estimate despite $120.30 per barrel price

2011-04-13 07:04:13 GMT+7 (ICT)

VIENNA (BNO NEWS) --The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) on Tuesday said oil demand this year could rise to 1.4 million barrels per day, while the price per barrel stood at $120.30, up 29 cents since last Friday.

According to OPEC's Secretariat, the organization will need to provide an average of 29.9 million barrels per day to fulfill global demands. This is an increase of 100,000 barrels per day compared to the estimated amount announced last month.

The rising demands comes as the strife-torn African nation of Libya has significantly decreased its oil production. In February, Libya's production fell to 1.39 million barrels per day compared to a previous 1.58 million. Furthermore, in March, the number fell drastically, as it reportedly averaged around 460,000 barrels per day.

Excluding Iraq, as it does not participate in OPEC output agreements, production from the 11 OPEC members in March dropped by 580,000, averaging 26.6 million barrels per day, compared to February's 27.1 million.

The organizations biggest producer, Saudi Arabia, in March had an average output of 9 million per day, a 300,000 increase from February levels, according to Platts' recent survey. With the kingdom claiming 12.5 million barrels per day of capacity, this leaves Saudi Arabia with some 3.5 million of spare capacity.

In addition, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) also increased production, by 100,000 to an estimated 2.5 million barrels per day, while Kuwait boosted output by 70,000 to 2.4 million barrels per day.

OPEC's 12 members include Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Venezuela.

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