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In the last Countdown diary, Jerome mentioned that Cambridge Energy Research Assoc. (CERA) had released a report showing that a glut of oil would arrive between 2006 and 2010.  We tried to figure out how they got their numbers, but we couldn't really get very far since their  summary didn't have many details.  

However, Robert Esser and Peter Jackson, the authors of the study, gave an interview to the Oil and Gas Journal with more details about their report.  As we expected, some of their assumptions are very optimistic; for example, they are predicting increases of 1 million barrels per day in both Iraq and Iran, in addition to big increases in Nigeria and Saudi Arabia.  For the non-OPEC producers:

The non-OPEC areas with the best prospects for increased production, said CERA, are the Caspian region, up 2.5 million b/d; Russia, slowing to 1.15 million b/d of growth through 2010 from 1.97 million b/d in 2002-05; Brazil, 1.16 million b/d; Angola, 1.35 million b/d; and Canada, 1.32 million b/d. Production declines are expected in Norway, down 330,000 b/d; the UK, 360,000 b/d; Mexico, 200,000 b/d; and the US, 470,000 b/d. CERA expects production in the Far East to be "relatively flat to increasing a little bit."

Meanwhile, the article reports that energy industry insiders seem to be of two minds about future oil prices.
... at a June North American energy and power conference in Boston sponsored by RBC Capital Markets, ... two thirds of the energy executives and institutional investors surveyed said they expect oil prices to fall back to $35/bbl in 5 years, while the rest said it could hit $100/bbl in the same timeframe.

There was also some discussion of how they think that improved technology will allow producers to increase their reserves, but I didn't find it very convincing.  
by corncam on Mon Jun 27th, 2005 at 11:55:20 AM EST
Thanks for that info.

What do they mean about Russia?? That it will grow by 2mb/d in 2005, and then by 1 mb/d per year until 2010?? That would mean a production level of 16 mb/d in 2010. Or that it will grow by 1 mb/d by 2010, having grown by 2 mb/d in the past 3 years (I thought it was slightly more than that)? In that case, that's just 1 mb/d more to 10 mb/d.

I also don't see an additional 2.5 mb/d from the Caspian. ACG will add 800,000 b/d in the best case, Karachaganak 200,000, Tengiz say 400,000, and Kashagan - well they'll be lucky if they have 400,000 b/d by then. The rest is too small to make up the rest.

And a decline of 500,000 b/d for the US. How realistic is that?

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (jeromeguillet@yahoo.fr) on Mon Jun 27th, 2005 at 12:28:31 PM EST
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