Iraq sees oil prices at US$68 to US$75 in second half

BAGHDAD: Iraq, the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec’s) second-biggest oil producer, says crude prices will be in the range of US$68 (RM279) to US$75 (RM308) a barrel in the second half.

The price range is expected because of a commitment to Opec+ output cut, Iraq’s oil minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar told reporters at the Baghdad International Book Fair.

Opec had predicted earlier in the week that the recovery in global oil demand will gather strength in the second half of the year, as the group prepares to consider reviving more halted output.

Oil consumption will jump by about five million barrels a day – or roughly 5% – in the second half of 2021 versus the first as the world emerges from the pandemic slump, it added.

Opec and its partners have restored almost

“Oil consumption will jump by about five million barrels a day – or roughly 5% – in the second half of 2021.” The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries

40% of the production they shuttered when the coronavirus crushed demand a year ago, and will gather on July 1 to consider reviving the remainder.

Iraq said in May it was considering buying Exxon Mobil Corp’s stake in one of the world’s biggest fields.

When asked about Exxon’s status, he said it hasn’t yet withdrew from West Qurna-1 field as the country is still studying the alternative.

The 500,000 barrel-per-day-capacity West Qurna-1 oil well is located in the southern Basrah province. Claimed to be the largest of its kind in the world, the field is estimated to have recoverable reserves of more than 20 billion barrels.