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Saudi Arabia’s oil exports reached 2.06bn barrels in the first nine months of 2014 with proceeds amounting to $221bn, Arab News website has reported.
Domestic consumption during the same period reached nearly 621.5mn barrels, or 23% of the total output, Fahad bin Jumaa was quoted as saying by Al-Riyadh daily. Jumaa said oil prices and exports have dropped since the beginning of Q3 in July where prices of Brent remained below $100 per barrel since Sep 5 to reach $94.13, which is considered the lowest in more than two years.
The economic expert attributed price fall to a number of factors including volatility of OPEC supplies, production increase of the US, slowdown of global demand outside the US, resumption of Libyan oil production by 900,000 barrels per day, and improvement of Nigerian production to 1.9mn barrels a day.
Based on the supply and demand indications, Jumaa said Brent prices are expected to drop by $5-$10 per barrel to $80 in the next period. The kingdom, however, is expected to keep its current export levels regardless of production cut due to drop in local consumption as summer season is over, he said.
A top Saudi Aramco official was also quoted as saying that the company is planning to invest $40bn in the next ten years to keep stability of oil production and double gas production.
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