Saudi Arabia says it can cover oil shortfalls caused by Libyan crisis
Posted February 22, 2011 9:13 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
CAIRO, Egypt – Saudi Arabia’s oil minister said the oil powerhouse has ample spare capacity to offset any supply disruptions.
Tuesday’s comments by Ali Naimi came as Libya unrest sent oil markets surging for a second day.
The official Saudi Press Agency quoted Naimi as saying that Saudi’s production capacity of 12.5 million barrels per day can help “compensate for any shortage in international supplies.”
Saudi Arabia, the de facto leader of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, currently produces around eight million barrels per day.
The U.S. benchmark crude futures contract surged over $7 per barrel to almost $94 on electronic trade in the New York Mercantile Exchange while the London-based Brent benchmark was above $106 per barrel.
