The International Energy Agency reports on the supply of oil in the world. The graph below shows the supply has increased since the military action started in Libya earlier this year.
Details for the increase in supply from this source are reported below from this same source:
Global oil supply rose by 270 kb/d in May from 87.41 mb/d, with OPEC crude underpinning the rise. Non-OPEC supply growth in 2011 is now +560 kb/d, half of 2010 levels. Revisions to refinery processing gains cut 0.2 mb/d from 2008-2011 supply, and outages in the Americas, UK and Yemen shave another 0.2 mb/d off 2011.
OPEC May crude supply rose by 210 kb/d to average 29.18 mb/d, but remains 1.25 mb/d below pre-Libyan crisis levels. Increases from Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Kuwait and Iraq offset lower UAE and Angolan output. Effective spare capacity stands at 4.01 mb/d. The 2011 ‘call on OPEC crude and stock change’ is revised up by 0.4 mb/d to 30.1 mb/d, and increases by 1 mb/d between 2Q11 and 3Q11.
The excerpt below outlines the decision by the Obama administration to release 30 million barrels of oil from the strategic oil reserve. Is this a politically expedient measure by the administration to lower gas prices to boost Obama’s plummeting ratings? Are the American people so transfixed on reality television that our minds and hearts are blinded to the consequences of unchecked government?
How many czars, executive orders and unconstitutional military actions will it take before the government concludes that we will not fight for our freedom and future? The shortfall due to Libya’s production loss is minimal and not impacting the United States. Why are we selling our energy reserves to outset a supposed oil shortfall that would only impact Europe? And what happens to the $2.7 billion from the sale of the oil?
David DeGerolamo
U.S. to Release 30 Million Barrels of Oil from Strategic Reserve
The U.S. is releasing 30 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as part of an international effort to make up for disruption in Libya’s oil production, a decision aimed at increasing supply ahead of the nation’s summer driving season, Obama administration officials said Thursday.
“We’re heading into a period in which demand for oil tends to be at its highest,” a senior administration official told reporters. “This release is intended to address that increasing demand.”
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“The Strategic Petroleum Reserve was designed for energy emergencies, not political convenience. Releasing our reserves to calm the market is emblematic of an administration whose energy policy is irrational and counter-productive,” said Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., head of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
“The Obama administration’s decision to release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is ill-advised and not the signal the markets need,” said Karen Harbert, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Energy Institute.
