Kuwait oil minister Khaled al-Fadhel last week said that he expected output from the Partitioned Neutral Zone shared with Saudi Arabia to reach 550,000 b/d by the end of 2020 (MEES, 28 February). This would be an impressive feat as it is in excess of the 450-500,000 b/d typical production levels prior to the shut in of the offshore Khafji field in 2014 and onshore Wafra in 2015.

But US major Chevron, which operates the Saudi portion of the Wafra field, is much less bullish. The major, in the operations supplement to its 2019 annual report released this week, says it expects “ramp up to pre–shut-in levels within one to two years.” (CONTINUED - 154 WORDS)