Short-Term Forecast Sees Rising US Oil Output Offsetting OPEC Cutbacks - Energy Dept.

Global production of liquid fuels such as gasoline and diesel is expected to exceed consumption despite OPEC cutbacks, due in part due to increased oil output in the United States, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in its Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) for February on Thursday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 28th February, 2019) Global production of liquid fuels such as gasoline and diesel is expected to exceed consumption despite OPEC cutbacks, due in part due to increased oil output in the United States, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in its Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) for February on Thursday.

"Despite relatively lower supply from a number of major crude oil-producing countries, including Saudi Arabia, Libya, Venezuela, and Canada, global liquid fuels production was forecast to exceed global consumption through 2020," the EIA said. "Higher US crude oil production growth and slightly lower global oil consumption will offset the short-term supply reductions.

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As a result, the forecast predicted that global stocks of refined petroleum liquids would exceed consumption for the next two years, with prices remaining relatively flat, the release said.

In January OPEC, together with several non-OPEC nations, agreed to cut production by 1.2 million barrels per day (b/d), prompting EIA to predict a 150,000 b/d drop in oil supplies this year followed by a 400,000 b/d drop in 2020.

However, estimates of US crude oil output were revised upward by about by about 340,000 b/d in both 2019 and 2020, primarily due to increased output in the Gulf of Mexico and the Permian Region in the states of Texas and New Mexico, according to the release.