20100118
LONDON (Reuters) - Angola's crude oil exports were expected to fall in March but will remain well above the output target set by producer group OPEC, traders said on Monday.
Angola is set to export an average of 1.79 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil in March, down from 1.88 million bpd in February, according to preliminary loading programmes.
For a graphic on Angola's crude oil output, click here: here
The loading schedules give planned Angolan exports for the month but are released well ahead of the dates cargoes are due to be shipped and are therefore subject to change.
In February, schedules showed 1.81 million bpd of crude was due to be exported before two cargoes were added to the programme a week later, taking output up to 1.88 million bpd.
"It looks like volumes are down slightly but there could be extra cargoes added later and I don't think it is a significant drop, just a bit of tinkering," one physical West African crude trader said on Monday.
Despite a dip in planned exports for March, Angola's output would still be well ahead of its target set by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.
Angola says its output target is 1.656 million bpd. But an OPEC internal document widely quoted by industry sources suggests Angola's limit is 1.52 million bpd.
|