Ecuador 2013 Crude Output Rises 4% on Year to 526,000 Barrels a Day

Ecuador's average oil output rose 4% to 526,000 barrels a day last year, from 504,000 barrels a day the same period a year before, the central bank said.

 

Petroecuador, Petroamazonas and Rio Napo, the three state-run oil companies, accounted for 75% of Ecuador's crude oil production in the period.

 

The country's total oil production last year was 192 million barrels.

 

Ecuador's crude-oil output in December increased about 9% from the one year earlier to an average of 548,000 barrels per day.

 

Oil is Ecuador's main export and the government's main revenue earner.

 

According to official projections, Ecuador could produce about 741,000 barrels of crude oil per day by 2019. Reaching this goal will require investments of about $5.5 billion per year over the next five years.

 

Last August, President Rafael Correa announced that his government will go ahead with the development of the Ishpingo-Tambococha-Tiputini oil field, also known as ITT, which has about 900 million barrels of oil reserves. The government plans to start production next year.

Source: Wall Street Journal