LONDON — Despite U.S. pressure, Saudi Arabia intends to maintain
crude oil production well below capacity.
Industry sources said the Saudi Oil Ministry has no mid- or long-term
plans to bolster production to maximum capacity.
In 2009, Riyad was said to
have increased oil output capacity to 12.5 million barrels per day, Middle East Newsline reported.
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But a document by Saudi Aramco, which manages the kingdom's oil
industry, asserted that production would be limited to 10.4 million barrels
per day after 2010.
The document, obtained by the U.S. magazine Business
Week, asserted that Aramco could not sustain maximum production for more
than a few weeks.
In 2009, Riyad was said to have reduced production to less
than eight million barrels per day.
"Saudi Aramco will be able to maintain that volume only for short,
temporary periods such as emergencies," Business Week reported. "Then it will
scale back to a sustainable production level of about 10.4 million barrels a
day."
