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The latest data by the Joint Organisations Data Initiative on Wednesday showed that the world’s crude oil production fell by 1.2 million barrels per day in February compared to the same month last year as a large annual production gain in the United States partially offset steep output declines in Saudi Arabia and Iraq.
According to oilprice.com, compared to January 2024, global crude oil production jumped by 473,000 bpd in February as U.S. oil production rebounded following shut-ins due to bad weather in January, according to the JODI data shared by the Riyadh-based International Energy Forum.
Year-over-year, crude oil production in Saudi Arabia plunged by as much as 1.4 million bpd, the data showed.
The Kingdom has been implementing an extra voluntary cut of 1 million bpd since July 2023 to help the OPEC+ group’s efforts to “stabilize the oil market.”
Saudi Arabia’s crude production rose by 55,000 bpd month-on-month in February—to a seven-month high of 9.01 million bpd, according to the JODI data.
The Saudis have pledged to keep their crude production at “about 9 million bpd” until the end of June 2024. So far, the Kingdom has been keeping its pledge and hasn’t produced above its self-imposed quota under the OPEC+ deal.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s crude oil exports rose by 20,000 bpd from January to 6.32 million bpd in February. This was a three-month high in Saudi exports, the data showed.
Another large annual production decline was registered in Iraq, where crude oil output fell by 347,000 bpd, per the JODI data which compiles self-reported figures from the individual countries.
The hefty output drops in the two largest producers in OPEC – Saudi Arabia and Iraq – were partially offset by a 744,000 bpd jump in U.S. crude oil production in February compared to the same month last year.
