An OPEC official told the Wall Street Journal that the last time OPEC pumped more crude oil was in April 2012 when production was 31.7 million b/d.
The report said Iraq’s production rose by an estimated 247,000 b/d to 4.307 million b/d during November, the OPEC report said.
Energy prices
The January crude oil contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange dropped 40¢ to settle Dec. 10 at $36.76/bbl. The February contract was down 29¢ to settle at $38.43/bbl.
The NYMEX natural gas contract for January hits lows last seen in April 2012, falling 4.7¢ to a rounded $2.01/MMbtu. The Henry Hub gas price was $1.91/MMbtu on Dec. 10, down 9¢.
“You need winter,” Donald Morton, Herbert J. Sims & Co. senior vice-president, told WSJ. “The natural gas spike of supply is way outpacing demand.”
Heating oil for January delivery dropped by a rounded 1.4¢ to a rounded $1.23/gal. The price for reformulated gasoline stock for oxygenates blending for January was up 4.8¢ to a rounded $1.28/gal.
The January ICE contract for Brent crude dropped 38¢ to $39.73/bbl, and the February contract was down 21¢ to $40.13/bbl. The ICE gas oil contract for January was $365/tonne on Dec. 10, down $8.
The average price for OPEC’s basket of 12 benchmark crudes for Dec. 10 was $34.69/bbl, down 11¢.
Contact Paula Dittrick at [email protected].
*Paula Dittrick is editor of OGJ’s Unconventional Oil & Gas Report.
