The final shuttering of Kuwait’s Shuaiba refinery at the end of March has added some 25,000 b/d of crude to global markets. The development further hampers Opec’s spluttering efforts to reduce global stocks, which have failed to sustain crude prices. Although Kuwaiti crude production stayed flat at 2.69mn b/d last month, the percentage of its crude that was exported soared from 73% to 80%.
Crude oil represented 81% of all of Kuwait’s oil exports in April, up from 74% in March. Alongside rising crude exports, the reduced refinery run rates meant that products exports slumped to just 518,000 b/d, their lowest level since May 2013. While this enabled crude revenues to rise to $3.3bn in April, their highest since December, Kuwait is unlikely to be able to repeat the trick. (CONTINUED - 215 WORDS)
