Saudi Arabia says can pump extra 1

Saudi Arabia says can pump extra 1-mil b/d crude at short notice

Tokyo (Platts)--28Sep2004


Saudi Arabia is currently pumping 9.5-mil b/d of crude and can pump an
additional 1-mil b/d at short notice, a Saudi oil official said Tuesday after
US light crude prices spiked above an unprecedented $50/bbl. "We have been
producing about 9.3-mil b/d for the last four months and about 9.5-mil b/d
today to supply our major markets and could top about 1-mil b/d at short
notice," Ahmad al-Ghamdi, a Saudi oil ministry adviser, told the Asia Energy
Forum in Tokyo. 

Saudi Arabia, he said, intends to maintain spare crude
production capacity in the range of 1.5- to 2-mil b/d to counter sudden supply
disruptions. Al-Ghamdi said OPEC was doing all it could to keep markets
supplied, describing the crude price spike above $50/bbl as "political and
commercial." "OPEC is doing all it can do to provide supplies to the market.
But we need to get cooperation from other suppliers. Problems creating the
high prices are all political and commercial," he said.

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