Uncertainties Remain in Energy Market Due to Covid

Washington: The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said that reduced economic activity due to the Covid-19 pandemic has caused changes in energy demand and supply over the past year and will continue to affect these patterns in the future.

According to the EIA's March's Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) released on Tuesday, for the crude oil prices, Brent prices averaged $62 per barrel in February, up $8 per barrel from January's average and up $7 per barrel from February 2020, reports Xinhua news agency.

Rising Brent prices in February continued to reflect expectations of rising oil demand as both Covid-19 vaccination rates and global economic activity increased, combined with petroleum supply limitations by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and partner countries, said the agency.

EIA forecasts that global consumption of petroleum and liquid fuels will average 97.5 million barrels per day (b/d) for the year 2021, which is up by 5.3 million b/d from 2020. 

EIA forecasts that consumption will increase by another 3.8 million b/d in 2022 to average 101.3 million b/d.

As for the US, the EIA expects that American crude oil production will average 11.1 million b/d in 2021 and 12 million b/d in 2022. 

EIA's current forecast for US crude oil production in 2022 is 500,000 b/d higher than in last month's STEO because of higher expected crude oil prices.