Page 7 - AfrOil Week 47

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The cartel is likely to stick to its existing 7.7mn contracted by 2% y/y to 335mn kilolitres of oil
barrel per day (bpd) production cut, the Petro- equivalent. The ministry noted that fossil fuel
leum Association of Japan’s (PAJ) president, supplies had declined for a sixth year in a row,
Tsutomu Sugimori, told a December 20 press accounting for 85% of primary energy supply,
conference. while renewables and nuclear power had both
“Given the weaker oil demand amid the expanded their share. Fossil fuels saw their share
resurgence of COVID-19 infections, OPEC+ is of the energy mix drop to its lowest level since
likely to keep the current curbs ... after January,” fiscal 2011-12.
Reuters quoted the executive, who is also chair-
man of leading Japanese refiner Eneos, as saying. If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping
His comments were made after Bloomberg Asia’s oil and gas sector then please click here for
quoted unnamed OPEC+ delegates on Novem- NewsBase’s AsianOil Monitor.
ber 11 as saying that member countries were
inclined to delay production increases, but had DMEA: Iraq invites bids for refinery The resurgence
not been swayed by some calls to deepen cuts. BP and other investors in the Greater Tortue
The decision to refrain from upping production Ahmeyim (GTA) LNG project offshore Senegal in the number of
limits comes amid lockdowns in Europe and and Mauritania have scaled back their expansion
record case numbers in the US that have driven plans in order to reduce costs, Houston-based COVID-19 cases
California to introduce curfews. partner Kosmos Energy has said. threatens to bring
The Japanese Ministry of Health, meanwhile, The project’s second phase was expected to raise
revealed that the East Asian country’s cases had liquefaction capacity from 2.5mn tonnes per an end to the
climbed by 2,508 on November 22 – the fourth year (tpy) to 10mn tpy. Reporting its third-quar-
consecutive day of record-breaking numbers. ter results, though, Kosmos said the expansion recent recovery in
Speaking at the start of the spike in cases, would add only 2.5mn tpy, bringing the total to
Sugimori warned that rising infection num- 5mn tpy. Japan’s refinery
bers could depress national gasoline demand in Breakeven costs for this LNG are projected runs
December and January. Consumption is already to come to just above $4 per mmBtu for Asian
projected to slip 2% year on year this month, but deliveries and even less for European ones,
Sugimori said could it plunge as much as 9% in thanks to the lower capital costs.
December-January. Over in the UAE, national oil company
The resurgence in the number of COVID-19 (NOC) ADNOC said on November 9 it intended
cases also threatens to bring an end to the recent to start trading refined products in December
recovery in the country’ refinery runs, which hit through its joint venture with Italy’s Eni and
a 13-week high in the seven days to November Austria’s OMV. ADNOC Global Trading (AGT)
14. S&P Global Platts cited data published by the is 65%-owned by ADNOC, 20% by Eni and 15%
PAJ on November 18 as showing that run rates by OMV. The recently-formed venture began
had climbed 4.7% to 2.48mn bpd. derivatives trading in September with a focus
The pandemic is exacerbating a long-term on crude oil. It had hoped to launch trading
downward trend in Japanese fossil fuel con- operations in the second quarter of this year, but
sumption, which has been driven by rising the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic led to
energy efficiency and an ageing population. delays. Iraq is eager to build out its refining sec-
The Ministry of Energy, Trade and Indus- tor to wean itself off fuel imports, but the OPEC
try (METI) revealed last week that final energy producer’s dire fiscal straits mean it needs inter-
consumption in fiscal year 2019-2020 had national investment to take projects forward.

Week 47 25•November•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P7