UAE to shut 150,000-200,000 bpd oil output Oct-Nov

By Simon Webb

DUBAI (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates will reduce oil output by 150,000 to 200,000 barrels per day for 40 days in October and November for maintenance, an official at state oil company ADNOC said on Monday.

The scheduled shutdown will cut oil output from the world's fifth-largest oil exporter by up to 7.5 percent. The OPEC-member pumped around 2.6 million bpd in June, a Reuters survey showed.

"It's for 40 days, around 150,000 to 200,000 bpd," the official at Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The work will cut output just as consumer oil demand rises ahead of peak demand in the northern hemisphere for heating during winter. UAE crude is favored by Japanese refiners making heating oil.

Refiners in Japan say the UAE has offered them more oil in September to compensate for lower volumes during the maintenance.

The offshore Lower Zakum and Umm Shaif fields will be partially shut down, the official added. Lower Zakum typically pumps at around 280,000 bpd, while Umm Shaif produces around 200,000 bpd.

JAPAN GAS IMPORTS

Work at a gas facility on Das Island will force the shutdown, the source said. ADNOC unit ADGAS plans to shut one of three processing facilities on Das that produce liquefied natural gas (LNG) -- gas chilled to its liquid form for export.