Shell CEO, like OPEC, sees no oil shortages now

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell Chief Executive Jeroen van der Veer said on Monday he did not see any shortage of physical oil supplies, echoing the view of many OPEC ministers who say the world market is well-supplied.

Oil prices have risen more than fourfold since 2004 and gained about a third this year, partly on increased fears among investors that producers will struggle to produce enough oil to meet demand in a decade’s time.


“There are no physical shortages in the world. We don’t have ships waiting in the Middle East, no people queuing up for gasoline,” van der Veer told reporters in the Malaysian capital, where he was briefing on Shell’s Asian business plan.

“From a stocks point of view the whole value chain works well… It (the price) has a lot to do with psychology.”

U.S. crude prices hit a record high of $135.09 a barrel last month before retreating to below $126.00 on Monday.

Reuters