Oil Market Is ‘Well Supplied’ in Second Half of 2011, IEF Says

The oil market will be “well supplied” in the second half of 2011 as consuming and producing nations are pumping more crude when necessary, said Noe van Hulst,
secretary general of the International Energy Forum.
Markets are “well supplied” at the moment despite the disruption in supplies from Libya caused by the armed conflict in the country, he said in a telephone interview today. Commitments of producers such as Saudi Arabia to increase output, and the plan by International Energy Agency members to release oil stockpiles, will leave the market with ample supply in the second half of the year, van Hulst said.
Brent crude on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange rose to a 2 1/2-year high of $127.02 a barrel on April 11 as armed conflict halted exports from Libya and concern grew that political unrest in the Middle East could affect other oil- producing nations such as Syria, Yemen and Egypt.
“The markets have to calm down as consumers and producers are doing what they can to remedy the market from any disruption,” the secretary general of the Riyadh-based organization said.
Van Hulst said there is a consensus among large oil producers and consuming nations that geopolitical concerns are overstated and that the physical markets are well supplied, with comfortable levels of spare capacity and stockpiles.
IEF is the largest global gathering of energy ministers with over 80 countries including Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries member states, United States, China, India, Russia, Brazil and Japan.
Source: Bloomberg