Oman saw oil production fall 20,000 b/d to average 950,000 b/d for 2020 due to its participation in the Opec+ cuts, freshly released oil ministry data show. But that’s only half the story. Because non-Opec participants switched their production quotas from oil to crude for last year’s cuts, Muscat managed to capitalize on new, condensate-rich projects – increasing condensate production from 130,000 b/d to 188,000 b/d, and a whopping 214,000 b/d in H2 with the startups of Rabab Harweel and Khazzan Phase-2 (MEES, 16 October 2020). And as the latter ramps up, this figure could hit 250,000 b/d this year. Crude output, in contrast, fell by almost 10% to a 12-year low of 762,000 b/d.
Condensate producers, primarily BP at Khazzan and state firm PDO operating Block 6, took full advantage of the changes to the Opec+ agreement. But the big crude producers weren’t so lucky. Output from CCED-operated Blocks 3&4 fell 12% from 43,000 b/d to 38,000 b/d for 2020, and other key producers Occidental and Daleel Petroleum (CNPC) were hit equally hard. (CONTINUED - 190 WORDS)
