Oman’s oil exports see slight increase in July

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MUSCAT: The National Center for Statistics and Information (NCSI) has revealed that the Sultanate of Oman’s total oil exports reached 179.36 million barrels by the end of July this year, marking a slight increase of 0.05 per cent compared to 178.9 million barrels during the same period last year.

The report also highlighted a decrease in the average price of oil, which fell to $83.9 per barrel in July, a 6.1 per cent drop from the previous month’s price of $89.3 per barrel. Meanwhile, the average oil price dropped to $83.9 per barrel in July, a 6.1 per cent decrease compared to the previous month when it was $89.3 per barrel.

The latest data revealed a 5.2 per cent decline in Oman’s total oil production, which fell to 211.8 million barrels by the end of July 2024, down from 223.5 million barrels during the same period last year. Crude oil production saw a significant decrease of 7.1 per cent, totaling 162.2 million barrels, compared to 174.6 million barrels a year earlier. In contrast, condensate production increased by 1.6 per cent, reaching over 49.6 million barrels, up from 48.9 million barrels last year. The average daily oil production in July 2024 was recorded at 994.8 thousand barrels, a decrease from the 1.5 thousand barrels reported during the same period in 2023.

The report also highlighted that the People's Republic of China remains the top importer of Omani oil, with imports reaching 171.7 million barrels by the end of July, marking a 4.8 per cent increase compared to 163.1 million barrels during the same period last year. Japan followed with approximately 3.4 million barrels, South Korea with 2.5 million barrels, and India with 1 million barrels.

In the natural gas sector, Oman saw a 5.5 per cent increase in domestic production and imports, totaling over 32.6 billion cubic meters by the end of July 2024, compared to 30.9 billion cubic meters during the same period last year. Associated gas production rose by 6 per cent to 6.5 billion cubic meters, while non-associated gas production, including imports, increased by 5.3 per cent to 26.3 billion cubic meters.

NCSI's data further indicated that gas usage in industrial projects surged by 14.6 per cent by the end of July 2024, reaching more than 20.7 billion cubic meters, up from 18.1 billion cubic meters in the same period last year. Gas consumption in power generation also rose by 11.9 per cent, totaling over 5.3 billion cubic meters compared to 4.7 billion cubic meters last year. However, gas used in oil fields saw a decline of 19.3 per cent, dropping to 6.3 billion cubic meters from 7.8 billion cubic meters during the same period in 2023.

In terms of petroleum product sales, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) experienced an 11.5 per cent increase, with sales reaching 5.8 million barrels by the end of July 2024, compared to 5.2 million barrels during the same period last year. Conversely, aviation fuel sales decreased by 6.8 per cent, totaling 2.3 million barrels compared to 2.5 million barrels last year. Diesel sales also saw a slight drop of 0.7 per cent, recording 8.5 million barrels, down from 8.1 million barrels during the same period in 2023.