OPEC's crude oil exports rose to 22.536 million b/d in June from 22.111 million b/d in May, a month-on-month increase of 425,000 b/d, according to data published this week by the Joint Organisations Data Initiative.
OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia boosted exports by 539,000 b/d to 7.378 million b/d from 6.839 million b/d in May. The June export figure is the highest since October 2008, when the export figure provided to JODI was 7.512 million b/d. But the highest figure for Saudi exports provided to JODI was 8.344 million b/d in May 2003.
The data, provided by individual countries to OPEC which then gives them to JODI, shows that Iraq's monthly crude exports have consistently outpaced those of Iran since December last year. In June, Iranian exports averaged 2.017 million b/d, broadly unchanged from May, while Iraqi exports rose to 2.273 million b/d -- a post-war high -- from 2.225 million b/d the previous month.
The data shows Libyan exports falling from 1.118 million b/d in January, before the start of the rebellion against the government of Moammar Qadhafi, to 981,000 b/d in February and 202,000 b/d in March. There were no Libyan crude exports in April or June, but May saw an average of 9,000 b/d exported.
Nigeria, according to the data, produced 2.446 million b/d in June and exported 2.283 million b/d, but these figures include condensates.
The figures from Venezuela showed June production at 2.775 million b/d and exports at 1.575 million b/d.
Total OPEC production rose by 767,000 b/d to 30.49 million b/d in June from 29.723 million b/d in May, with Saudi Arabia boosting output by 918,000 b/d to 9.813 million b/d from 8.895 million b/d. The June figure is the highest since April 2003 -- the month after the US-led invasion of Iraq -- when the kingdom said it produced 9.745 million b/d.
JODI is part of the Riyadh-headquartered International Energy Forum, which promotes dialog between oil producing and consuming countries.
OPEC, meanwhile, using secondary source estimates, pegged its June output at 29.6 million b/d, a figure considerably lower than the JODI total. Secondary source estimates put Nigerian and Venezuelan output in June at 2.16 million b/d and 2.41 million b/d respectively, well below the figures supplied to JODI.
