Azeri and Kazakh grades set for summer squeeze

摘要

Supplies of Caspian BTC Blend and CPC Blend are scheduled to fall over the summer as pipeline repairs and field maintenance stifle exports.Pipeline problems appear to be reducing Azeri BTC Blend loadings.July exports of the light sweet crude have been scheduled 11pc lower on the month at just under 460,000 b/d,the lowest in around seven years.The drop comes as repair work is carried out on the line between the Azertrans terminal at Sangachal in Azerbaijan and the BP-operated Baku-Tblisi-Ceyhan(BTC)export route,through which Russian and Turkmen crude flows.The line is operating below its 1.2mn b/d capacity,and is unlikely to return to full flows again until the end of the year,according to an industry source.Kazakh July-loading CPC Blend exports are also scheduled to fall next month.Loadings from the CPC-R Marine terminal in the Black Sea have been pencilled in at 1.31mn b/d,almost 7pc lower compared with June.The 9bn bl Tengiz field,the main contributor to CPC Blend,is scheduled to undergo maintenance from 1 August-15 September.Tengiz makes up around 60pc of CPC Blend,with supply also coming from the 13bn bl Kashagan field.