Oman crude average price increases by 24.8 per cent
The total domestic production and imports of natural gas reached 10.907 billion cubic metres in March 2018, a rise of 6.8 per cent over March 2017
MUSCAT: The average price of Oman crude oil increased by 24.80 per cent, as of March 2018, to reach to $62.9 per barrel, as against $50.40 a barrel in March 2017, according to statistics released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).
The statistics showed that the Sultanate’s total exports of crude oil and condensates was 72,646,300 barrels at the end of March 2018, a decline of 2.8 per cent compared to March 2017, when the number was 74,754,600 barrels.
The Sultanate’s production of crude oil and condensates at the end of March 2018 was 87,032,500 barrels — 77,247,500 barrels of crude oil and 9,785,000 barrels of condensates.
China was the largest importer of the Sultanate’s crude oil and condensates, buying 56,896,600 barrels. India followed with 13,445,400 barrels and Japan with 901,700 barrels.
Domestic production
The total domestic production and imports of natural gas reached 10.907 billion cubic metres in March 2018, an increase of 6.8 per cent over March 2017, when it was 10.215 billion cubic metres.
Industrial projects in the Sultanate used 61.2 per cent of the nation’s natural gas, as of the end of March 2018, reaching 6.678 billion cubic metres.
The use of natural gas by Oman’s industrial estates, including the Oman Mining Company, Oman Cement and Sultan Qaboos University (SQU), increased by 33.4 per cent at the end of March 2018 to reach to 118 million cubic metres. Oil wells used 2.559 billion cubic metres of natural gas at the end of March 2018; a growth of 17.7 per cent from the 2.174 billion cubic metres in March 2017.
This included 784 million cubic metres as fuel, 1.030 billion cubic metres for injecting wells, and 287 million cubic metres for other uses, which include losses, differences in meter readings and contraction factors.
The use by power plants of natural gas stood at 1.552 billion cubic metres, an increase of 1.3 per cent over the previous year.
Non-associated gas production, including imports, stood at 8.960 billion cubic metres, whereas the associated oil production stood at 1.948 billion cubic metres.