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One of Rigzone’s regular market watchers takes a look at the status of new global base refineries, US crude inventory levels and expectations and the effect of the Gulf Argos rig commissioning of Mexico from BP. Read on for more details.
Rig zone: What were some market expectations that actually played out over the past week and which expectations didn’t?
Hillary Stevenson, Senior Director of Energy Market Intelligence at IIR Energy: US crude inventories (excluding SPR) fell 4.581 million barrels to 465.968 million barrels in the week ended April 14, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). Analysts had expected a draw of 2.464 million barrels with the American Petroleum Institute (API) reporting a decline of 2.675 million barrels for the same week.
Crude output was expected as refinery demand picks up as spring maintenance projects wrap up, but this week it was all about resolutions of unplanned shutdowns. A brief restart at Suncor’s Denver refinery and a return to service at Phillips 66’s Rodeo, CA refinery helped lead refinery gains, according to IIR Energy. US refineries rose 259,000 barrels per day to 15.844 million barrels per day in the week ended April 14, according to the EIA.
Rig zone: What were some market surprises?
stevenson: New global base refineries cannot rest. Dangote Industries Limited delayed the commercial start-up of its 650,000 bpd Lekki refinery in Nigeria due to power plant problems and Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company (KIPIC) had to shut down two crude trains in operation at its 410,000 barrels per day (Design). – 615,000 barrels per day) Mina Al Zour refinery in Kuwait due to a problem with the hydrogen unit, according to IIR Energy.
Rig zone: What news/trends will you be waiting for next week?
stevenson: It will remain to be seen whether US production can exceed 12.3 million barrels per day with the commissioning of BP’s Argos Gulf of Mexico platform. The 140,000 bpd rig is BP’s first since the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in April 2010 and will extend the life of its Mad Dog field.
To contact the author, please send an email andreas.exarcheas@rigzone.com
