Key trend: China remained the dominant destination for Omani crude
The average price of Oman crude oil saw an increase of 39.7 per cent by the end of December 2021 compared to the same period in 2020, according to the latest data from the National Center for Statistics and Information (NCSI). Oman crude oil prices rose from an average of $46.00 per barrel in 2020 to $64.30 per barrel last year, the Center noted.
Also, Omani crude oil exports increased by 0.7 per cent last year. Daily production rose to an average of 971,200 barrels per day at the end of December 2021 compared to 950,700 barrels per day at the end of December 2020, with a production increase of 2.2 per cent. On the other hand, total production of crude oil ‘without oil condensate’ decreased by 1.6 per cent during this period.
China retained its leading position as the biggest importer of Omani crude, which amounted to 242,247,300 barrels in 2021, down from 248,125,900 a year earlier, a marginal decrease of 2.4 per cent.
Crude oil exports to Japan, South Korea and India recorded a noticeable increase. According to the data, the Sultanate of Oman’s exports of crude oil to Japan grew by 6.7 per cent from 3,925,000 barrels in 2020 to 4,187,600 barrels last year, representing an increase of 31.1 per cent. Exports to South Korea climbed from 4,996,200 barrels to 6,547,800 barrels over the same period.
Meanwhile, the country’s crude oil exports to India rose 62.5 per cent from 17,804,800 barrels in 2020 to 28,940,300 barrels last year.
Natural gas production (including imports) witnessed an increase of 8.2 per cent in 2021 to 50,191,000 cubic metres, compared to 46,396,000 cubic meters a year earlier. Consumption of natural gas in industrial areas increased by 51.7 per cent, while oil fields saw an increase of 12.9 per cent in their gas consumption.
