Opec's oil export revenue surged 54% in 2022 amid higher prices

Oil producers' group says exports rose nearly 9 per cent last year, but stayed just below pre-pandemic levels

Opec's headquarters in Vienna. The group's oil production rose by 2.53 million barrels per day in 2022. Bloomberg

Opec's revenue from petroleum exports surged 54 per cent last year to its highest level in nearly a decade, as Russia's invasion of Ukraine resulted in record crude prices.

The oil producers' group earned $873.57 billion in 2022, up from $566.44 billion a year earlier, Opec said in its Annual Statistical Bulletin, which was released on Tuesday.

Brent crude, the benchmark for two thirds of the world’s oil, soared to nearly $140 a barrel last year after Moscow's military offensive against Ukraine stoked crude supply concerns.

The international benchmark has lost nearly 9 per cent of its value this year as investors worry about slowing growth in the US and Europe as well as a slow economic rebound in China, the world’s second-largest economy and biggest crude importer.

Global oil demand grew by 2.49 million barrels per day on a yearly basis to 99.56 million bpd last year, the report showed.

Meanwhile, crude oil production worldwide rose by 3.46 million bpd to 72.8 million bpd, marking the second straight annual increase in output since 2020.

Opec’s production rose by 2.53 million bpd in 2022, while output from non-Opec countries increased by 920,000 bpd, the report showed.

“A problem cannot be solved if it is not accurately diagnosed. Remedies cannot be offered unless there is a correct understanding of the situation. This is particularly the case in the realm of energy transitions,” Opec Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais said during the virtual launch of the report.

“Energy, as a topic so central to our daily lives, can often elicit strong opinions, which in some cases feed into policy formation,” Mr Al Ghais said.

“Opec is focused on ensuring the quality and reliability of data research.”

Opec’s exports rose nearly 9 per cent to 21.39 million bpd last year, but remained slightly below pre-pandemic levels, the report said.

More than 70 per cent of the crude was exported to Asia, with shipments to Europe jumping by about 18 per cent, Opec said.

Earlier this month, top crude exporter Saudi Arabia and Russia announced output cuts for August amid growing concerns about the global economic outlook.

The kingdom said it would extend its voluntary production cut of a million barrels per day, which was initially announced for July, for another month.

Russia is also cutting its oil exports by 500,000 bpd in August on top of the output reductions that have already been announced, state news agency Tass reported.

Last month, the Opec+ alliance of 23 oil-producing countries agreed to stick to its existing output policy until the end of 2024.

The group has total production curbs of 3.66 million bpd, or about 3.7 per cent of global demand, in place, including a 2 million bpd reduction agreed to last year and voluntary cuts of 1.66 million bpd announced in April.

Opec+ countries currently produce about 40 per cent of all the world's crude oil.