The world will store unwanted oil for most of 2016 as declines in U.S. output take time and OPEC is unlikely to cut a deal with other producers to reduce ballooning output, the International Energy Agency said.
The agency, which coordinates energy policies of industrialised countries, said that while it did not believe oil prices could follow some of the most extreme forecasts and fall to as low as $10 per barrel, it was equally hard to see how they could rise significantly from current levels.
The Paris-based IEA trimmed its forecast for 2016 oil demand growth, which now stands at 1.17 million barrels per day (bpd) following a five-year high of 1.6 million in 2015.
It cut its call on OPEC crude for 2016 by 100,000 bpd to 31.7 million bpd. That figure is much lower than OPEC’s January output of 32.63 million bpd.
“Persistent speculation about a deal between OPEC and leading non-OPEC producers to cut output appears to be just that: speculation. It is OPEC’s business whether or not it makes output cuts either alone or in concert with other producers but the likelihood of coordinated cuts is very low,” the IEA said.
Oil prices collapsed over the past 18 months to below $30 a barrel from as high as $115 as OPEC opened its taps to drive higher-cost producers such as U.S. shale companies out of the market.
