KPC this week said it had contained an oil spill near Al-Zour. Local estimates put the quantity of crude at 35,000 barrels with the source reckoned to be an old 50-km pipeline in the offshore Al-Khafji field in the Neutral Zone. Oil Minister Isam al-Marzuq says samples will be analyzed to determine the source.
The spill is unlikely to hasten a solution to a dispute between Kuwait and Saudi Arabia over Neutral Zone operations, which has seen 300,000 b/d Khafji field shut in since October 2014 and the 200,000 b/d onshore Wafra field since March 2015. Saudi Arabia unilaterally halted output, citing environmental concerns, although a key factor was escalating disagreements over management of the zone (MEES, 16 December 2016). (CONTINUED - 115 WORDS)
