Saudi oil production unchanged

Saudi Arabia’s leaders made clear yesterday that they see no reason to increase oil production until customers demand it, apparently rebuffing President Bush as U.S. gasoline prices soar.

It was Bush’s second personal appeal this year to King Abdullah, head of the monarchy ruling this desert kingdom that is a longtime prime ally of the United States and home to the world’s largest oil reserves. But Saudi officials stuck to their position that they will pump more oil into the system only when asked to by buyers, something they say is not happening, the president’s national security adviser told reporters.
Bernard Picchi, an energy analyst at Wall Street Access, an independent research firm, said the 300,000-barrel Saudi production increase was “a token amount” that is not expected to have much impact on prices.

It would be different, he said, if Saudi Arabia boosted production by 1 million or 1.5 million barrels a day. The announced increase will have Saudi Arabia pumping 9.45 million barrels a day by June, Saudi officials said. That’s about 2 million barrels below its capacity.

Baltimore Sun