OPEC's Top Crude Oil Producers, 2011-November 2013

by David Rachovich

OPEC Crude Oil Production September 2013-November 2013 (thousand barrels per day)

Rank Nov  2013	Country	Full Year 2011*	Full Year 2012*	Sep '13*	Oct '13*	Nov '13* (Nov '13**)
1.	Saudi Arabia	9,296	9,737	10,037	9,714	9,626 (9,746)
2.	Iraq	2,665	2,979	2,794	2,915	3,107 (..)
3.	Kuwait	2,538	2,793	2,844	2,813	2,781 (2,944)
4.	UAE	2,516	2,624	2,783	2,776	2,731 (2,572)
5.	Iran	3,628 (3,576**)	2,973 (3,740**)	2,667 (3,517**)	2,679 (3,200**)	2,716 (3,300)
6.	Venezuela	2,380	2,359	2,363	2,365	2,364 (2,854)
7.	Nigeria	2,111	2,073	1,955	1,925	1,821 (1,672)
8.	Angola	1,667	1,738	1,720	1,716	1,737 (1,568)
9.	Algeria	1,240	1,210	1,152	1,160	1,122 (1,213)
10.	Qatar	794	753	731	731	731 (719)
11.	Ecuador	490	499	520	521	526 (545)
12.	Libya	462	1,393	375	512	371 (226)
Total OPEC***		29,788	31,132	29,939	29,827	29,633 (..)

*Based on secondary sources.

(**)Based on direct communication.
..Not available

***Totals may not add up due to independent rounding.

Source: OPEC, Monthly Oil Market Report (MOMR), December 2013, p.45, Tables 5.4 and 5.5 here.

OPEC Expects North American Shale Oil Output to Jump

by Benoit Faucon, WSJ, Nov 8, 2013

Two years after dismissing North America's shale-oil boom as "marginal," OPEC changed its tune Thursday acknowledging, the new extraction technology could sharply cut the need for the group's own oil. According to the organization's annual World Oil Outlook, technological advancements in oil exploration will sharply boost supplies and cut global crude oil needs by 1 million barrels per day over the next five years. The report also found that new supplies of oil from the U.S. and Canada would reach 4.9 million barrels per day by 2018. That was more than double last year's forecast of 1.7 million barrels per day by 2018.
[Read more]

(A brief summary made available from SmartBrief  - D.R.)

BP: US oil production growth hit record-high in 2012

by Conglin Xu, OGJ, June 12, 2013

The US recorded the largest single-year increase in oil production in 2012, according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy. The review, released June 12 [2013], was the company’s 62nd annual report.

Backed by increasing production of unconventional oil and gas, the US recorded the highest growth in both oil and natural gas output in 2012, BP said. Meanwhile, coal consumption in the US experienced the largest decline in 2012 as it was displaced by less-expensive natural gas in electric power generation.

According to BP, world nuclear output recorded the largest annual decline in 2012. After 2011’s Fukushima accident, “higher imports of fossil fuels including [LNG] kept the lights on” in Japan. Due to higher natural gas prices in Europe, power generators substituted coal for gas—an opposite course from the US. [...]

World [primary - D.R.] energy consumption also dropped to 1.8% in 2012, down from 2.4% the previous year, BP reported. The decline was attributable to the economic slowdown as well as improved energy consumption efficiency due to high prices. As the major source of demand growth, emerging countries accounted for 56% of global consumption, up from 42% just 20 years ago.

Global oil consumption increased by 890,000 b/d, 0.9% below the historical average. OECD consumption declined by 1.3% (530,000 b/d) and non-OECD consumption grew by 3.3% (1.4 million b/d).

Global oil production climbed by 1.9 million b/d. Despite a decline in Iranian output due to international sanctions, OPEC contributed to about three quarters of the global increase. [Libyan production recovered strongly after the sharp drop in output in 2011, and Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar all produced at record levels - D.R.]. Non-OPEC production grew by 490,000 b/d [revised figure 440,000 b/d, according to BP data - D.R.] with increases in the US, Canada, Russia, and China.

BP’s review also stated that world natural gas consumption grew by 2.2%, below the historical average of 2.7%. [Read more]

(Please see BP Statistical Review of World Energy June 2013 - D.R.)

U.S. Crude Oil Imports from Top 15 Countries, Dec 2011 -- EIA

by David Rachovich

U.S. Crude Oil Imports (thousand barrels per day)#, Dec. 2011 - EIA

Rank	Country	Dec 2011	Nov 2011	Dec 2010
1.	Canada	2,436	2,361	2,086
2.	Saudi Arabia*	1,293	1,203	1,076
3.	Mexico	945	1,157	1,223
4.	Venezuela*	810	707	825
5.	Nigeria*	498	655	1,024
6.	Colombia	458	379	220
7.	Brazil	389	201	271
8.	Iraq*	380	395	336
9.	Angola*	357	343	307
10.	Kuwait*	231	299	125
11.	Russia	165	311	202
12.	Algeria*	141	82	262
13.	Ecuador*	106	176	192
14.	United Kingdom	64	18	124
15.	Oman	53	42	0
OPEC		3,816	3,878**	4,180***
All Countries		8,716	8,826	8,695

#Excluding oil imports into the U.S. territories.

*OPEC member.

**OPEC total includes also imports from the United Arab Emirates – 18,000 barrels per day.

***OPEC total includes also imports from Libya – 32,000 barrels per day.

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), Feb 28, 2012

(The top five exporting countries accounted for 69 percent of United States crude oil imports in December 2011 while the top ten sources accounted for approximately 89 percent of all U.S. crude oil imports. The top five sources of US crude oil imports for December 2011 were Canada (2,436 thousand barrels per day), Saudi Arabia (1,293 thousand barrels per day), Mexico (945 thousand barrels per day), Venezuela (810 thousand barrels per day) and Nigeria (498 thousand barrels per day)---please see EIA, December 2011 Import Highlights. Also, please see "U.S. Crude Oil Imports from Top 15 Countries, Dec 2010" and "U.S. Crude Oil Imports from Top 15 Countries, Jun 2012."  – D.R.)