One of OPEC’s largest producers, Kuwait, plans to boost its crude oil production capacity to 3.15 million barrels per day (bpd) within four years, from 2.7 million bpd now, the government said on Monday.
Kuwait also intends to raise its natural gas production by 79% over the next four years, according to the government plans reported by The National.
Kuwait is currently OPEC’s fifth-largest producer after Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Iran, according to secondary sources in OPEC’s latest Monthly Oil Market Report (MOMR) published last week.
In May and June, Kuwait pumped 2.55 million bpd of crude oil, down from 2.65 million bpd in April, as the country is among several OPEC+ producers that announced additional cuts to production between May and December 2023. As part of these cuts totaling 1.66 million bpd, Kuwait has pledged a 128,000 bpd production cut.
As Kuwait reduced its oil production, Iran – exempted from the cuts – has been raising its own output and has surpassed Kuwait as OPEC’s fourth-largest oil producer.
For next year, Kuwait’s production quota is 2.676 million bpd, OPEC said when the producers with the additional cuts decided to extend those cuts until the end of 2024, “to achieve and sustain a stable oil market, and to provide long-term guidance for the market.”
It’s not only Kuwait that plans higher crude oil production capacity this decade. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates also intend to boost their respective capacities, each by 1 million bpd. The UAE is accelerating plans to raise its oil production capacity to 5 million bpd from 4 million bpd, while OPEC’s top producer and the world’s largest crude oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, aims to raise its crude oil production capacity to 13 million bpd by 2027 from 12 million bpd now.
By Michael Kern for Oilprice.com
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Most of Kuwait’s oil production comes from the super-giant Burgan oilfield which has been pumping oil for the last 77 years and accounting for most of Kuwait’s production and exports.
Moreover, it is estimated that Kuwait’s proven reserves don’t exceed 24 billion barrels (bb).
Furthermore, neither Saudi Arabia nor UAE are able to boost their production by 1.0 mbd each for the very same reasons that Kuwait can’t namely mature and fast-depleting fields and far lower proven reserves than they are claiming.
UAE was given a production quota of 3.5 mbd by OPEC but so far it even failed to lift its production to 3.2 mbd. UAE will never ever be able now or in the future to produce 3.5 mbd.
As for Saudi Arabia, the claim that it will expand its production capacity to 13.0 mbd by 2027 from a claimed 12.0 mbd now is a pipe dream. Saudi Arabia has never ever had a production capacity of 12.0 mbd or even 11.0 mbd. I estimated its production capacity at 6.5-7.0 mbd with the balance of 3.0-3.5 mbd coming from its stored oil to make up for what it declares as 10.0 mbd. That is why I described its voluntary cut of 1.0 mbd as the cut that never was.
Dr Mamdouh G Salameh
International Oil Economist
Global Energy Expert