Saudi Arabia Promises to Offset Oil Shortages Caused by Ukraine Crisis | News | The Moscow Times

Saudi Arabia Promises to Offset Oil Shortages Caused by Ukraine Crisis | News | The Moscow Times:



"Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said Monday the world's top oil exporter was willing to supply markets with more crude oil if rising tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine cause a shortage.



Russia's military intervention on Ukraine's Crimean peninsula and its aftermath in eastern Ukraine have rattled oil markets for the last few months, keeping benchmark Brent futures near $108 a barrel after hitting $112.39 on March 3, the highest this year.



"We are willing to supply any shortage which may arise," Naimi said. He said the kingdom's current output is around 9.6 million barrels per day, or bpd, while it has a capacity of 12.5 million bpd.



Saudi Arabia produced 9.66 million bpd of crude in April, up from 9.566 million bpd in March, an industry source familiar with the matter said. It supplied 9.650 million bpd to the market, up from 9.533 million bpd in March."



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