Muscat: Oman will cut crude oil exports to Asia by 15 per cent to meet local demand and to adhere to the deal made with OPEC members, the Ministry of Oil and Gas confirmed.

Oman’s rising demand comes from domestic surge of industries related to petroleum products including the multibillion dollar Sohar Refinery improvement project that is ready to boost output by up to 70 per cent. 

Under the OPEC deal in Vienna last year, Oman promised to cut 45,000bpd of crude oil to control the supply glut that has hit global markets since 2015. The deal has witnessed an unprecedented compliance rate of 91 per cent according to International Energy Agency.

Oman exports around 90 per cent of its crude oil to China, according to official data presented by the Ministry of Oil and Gas.

Crude oil output grew to 1 million barrels a day for the first time in history in 2016 before the Sultanate agreed to production cuts.

The OPEC agreement triggered a price rally that saw Oman crude prices double to above $55 a barrel in three months before falling to sub $50 level last week over concerns of rising US inventories.