U.A.E. Oil Output Is Said to Drop Most in Year on Works

(Bloomberg) -- Oil output in the United Arab Emirates slumped the most in a year last month as maintenance at fields in the Persian Gulf reduced supplies from the Middle East's fourth-biggest crude producer.

Output dropped 70,000 barrels a day from January, a person with knowledge of the matter said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. Maintenance occurred at fields that produce the Das blend, the person said.

The cut is the biggest since the U.A.E. reduced production by 120,000 barrels a day in January 2017 when the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies started to curb output to reduce a global glut. It pledged to pump not more than 2.87 million barrels a day on average over the life of the accord. The U.A.E.'s output was 2.85 million barrels a day in January, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

In line with the global accord, Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. will reduce shipments of Murban grade crude by 25 percent in April, the government-owned company said Thursday in an emailed statement. It didn't announce any changes in supply for Upper Zakum or Das blend.

The U.A.E.'s average compliance with the cuts accord has been 62 percent, though the rate improved to 117 percent in January from 103 percent in December, according to the International Energy Agency.

--With assistance from Anthony DiPaola

To contact the reporter on this story: Wael Mahdi in Kuwait at wmahdi@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nayla Razzouk at nrazzouk2@bloomberg.net, Claudia Carpenter, Bruce Stanley

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