The Energy Information Administration (EIA) released its weekly report today on the status of petroleum inventories in the United States. Here are some highlights:
CRUDE OIL INVENTORIES:
Crude oil inventories decreased by 4.7 million barrels (MMbbl) to a total of 423.6 MMbbl. At 423.6 MMbbl, inventories are 76.0 MMbbl below last year (15.2%) and are about 8% below the five-year average for this time of year. Inventories in Cushing, OK, the NYMEX delivery point, rose 1.5 million barrels to a total of 33.7 million barrels. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) decreased 2.5 million barrels from the prior week to 596.4 million barrels and stand 6.5% below the year ago level.
CRUDE OIL PRODUCTION:
Domestic crude oil production fell 100,000bpd to 11.6 million barrels per day, 600,000 bpd higher than the year ago period. While Alaska oil production rose 5,000 bpd to 454,000bpd, production in the Lower 48 fell 200,000bpd to 11.1 million barrels per day.
GASOLINE INVENTORIES:
Gasoline inventories increased by 5.5 million barrels (MMbbl) to a total of 224.1 MMbbl. At 224.1 MMbbl, inventories are down 13.6 MMbbl, or 5.7% lower than a year ago and are 4% below the five-year average for this time of year.
Here’s how individual regions and their gasoline inventory fared:
East Coast (+1.3 MMbbl)
Midwest (+1.7 MMbbl)
Gulf Coast (+1.3 MMbbl)
Rockies (+0.1 MMbbl)
West Coast (+1.0 MMbbl)
It’s important to note which regions saw increases/decreases as this information likely drives prices up (in the case of falling inventories) or down (in the case of rising inventories).
DISTILLATE (DIESEL, HEATING OIL) INVENTORIES:
Distillate inventories increased by 0.4 million barrels to a total of 124.2 MMbbl. At 124.2 MMbbl, inventories are down 24.8 MMbbl, or 16.6% lower vs. a year ago. Distillate inventories stand about 8% below the five-year average for this time of year.
IMPLIED GASOLINE DEMAND:
Gasoline supplied to the market amounted to 8.99 million barrels per day (MMbpd), or 486,000 bpd lower than the previous week. So far in 2021, implied demand (“products supplied”) is 10.1% higher versus 2020, per the EIA.
REFINERY OUTPUT/UTILIZATION:
Refinery utilization decreased by 0.2 percentage points vs. last week’s numbers to reach 89.6%. Gasoline production decreased to 9.9 million barrels per day while distillate fuel production increased to 4.9 million barrels per day last week.
Utilization rates for the last week were as follows:
East Coast: 91.5% (+1.7%)
Midwest: 92.6% (-1.6%)
Gulf Coast: 89.8% (-0.2%)
Rocky Mountains: 86.1% (-2.2%)
West Coast: 84.3% (+1.9%)
These percentages show how much of a region’s overall capacity was used to refine oil. It’s important to note these percentages, because the lower the utilization percent, the lower output — which has a direct impact on local gasoline prices. If refiners in your region have low output, you’re more likely to see gas prices rise.
OVERALL SUPPLY:
Total oil stocks in the United States are down by 153.5 MMbbl (-11.3%) versus a year ago and stand at 1.204 billion barrels (excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve).
IMPORTS/EXPORTS:
The U.S. imported 6.19 MMbpd of crude oil per day last week, down by 277,000 bpd vs. the previous week, while crude oil exports fell by 766,000 bpd to 2.88 MMbpd. Total motor gasoline imports last week averaged 688,000 bpd. The U.S. also imported 203,000 bpd of distillate fuels. However, during the same timeframe, the U.S. exported 821,000 bpd of finished gasoline and 1,176,000 bpd of distillates. In total, U.S. companies exported 8.77 MMbpd of oil and petroleum products.
Before the report was released, the price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 39 cents to $71.51 per barrel. Just after the report was released, oil was up 21 cents per barrel.