PRESS RELEASE: Survey says OPEC output falls 1.48 million bpd in June

Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries? (OPEC)'s overall crude output plunged to 26.07-million barrels per day in June from 27.55-million barrel per day (bpd) in May after Iraq turned off oil export flows early in the month, according to OPEC and oil industry officials surveyed by Platts, the energy market information division of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

OPEC said in a statement the average 1.8-mil bpd drop in Iraqi volumes was partly offset by increases from other OPEC members totaling some 320,000 bpd. The survey showed that the ten OPEC members, which agreed in March to limit their collective production to 24.201-mil bpd, boosted output from 24.65-mil bpd in May to 24.97-mil bpd in June. The latest leakage leaves the OPEC 10 some 769,000 bpd above their self-imposed output ceiling.

Iraq halted exports June 4 to protest the UN's one-month rollover of the oil-for-aid program instead of the usual six. Iraqi crude exports had been running close to 2.5-mil bpd in the week before Baghdad turned off the flows to export terminals at Ceyhan in Turkey and its own Gulf port Mina al-Bakr. Granted a five-month extension of the program last week, Iraq July 11 resumed crude loadings from both Ceyhan and Mina al-Bakr.

Of the OPEC 10, only the UAE did not increase production in June, maintaining output at May's 2.17-mil bpd level. The only OPEC member to produce within its quota in June was Indonesia, despite having boosted output by 40,000 bpd to 1.25-mil bpd. The biggest single increases came from Saudi Arabia whose 8.05-mil bpd in June represented a 90,000 bpd boost, and from Nigeria, whose output rose by 80,000 bpd to 2.08-mil bpd.

OPEC ministers meeting last week in Vienna decided to leave crude production quotas unchanged under the 24.201-mil bpd ceiling. They are next scheduled to meet Sept. 26.

Country    June    May      April   Quota      Mar            Quota

Algeria    0.840   0.810    0.800   0.773      0.810          0.805

Indonesia  1.250   1.210    1.210   1.255      1.270          1.307

Iran       3.650   3.630    2.650   3.552      3.750          3.698

Iraq       1.100   2.900    2.930     N/A      2.740            N/A

Kuwait     2.030   2.020    2.000   1.941      2.100          2.021

Libya      1.380   1.360    1.360   1.296      1.380          1.350

Nigeria    2.080   2.000    2.040   1.993      2.120          2.075

Qatar      0.680   0.670    0.670   0.627      0.690          0.653

Saudi

Arabia    8.050   7.960    7.930   7.865      8.240          8.189

UAE        2.170   2.170    2.180   2.113      2.210          2.201

Venezuela  2.830   2.820    2.830   2.786      2.910          2.902

Total     26.070  27.550   27.600                  28.220

OPEC 10   24.970  24.650   24.670  24.201     25.480         25.201

(excluding Iraq) (*)