Venezuela reports collapse in oil supply

Venezuela’s oil output sank to a new long-term low last month due to U.S. sanctions and blackouts, the country told OPEC, deepening the impact of a global production curb and further tightening supplies.

OPEC, Russia and other nonmember producers are reducing output by 1.2 million bpd from Jan. 1 for six months.

Output in Venezuela, once a top-three OPEC producer, has been declining for years due to economic collapse.

Overall OPEC output fell by a further 534,000 bpd to 30.022 million bpd, according to the secondary-source figures.

OPEC estimates that it needs to provide an average of 30.30 million bpd in 2019 to balance the market, a figure lowered by 160,000 bpd month-on-month partly due to weaker demand.

Even so, the report indicates there will be a small 2019 deficit if OPEC keeps pumping at March’s rate of just over 30 million bpd and other things remain equal.

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Article source: http://www.dailystar.com.lb//Business/International/2019/Apr-11/480885-venezuela-reports-collapse-in-oil-supply.ashx