Crude Oil Over Supply in the Mid Continent

January 8, 2013

We’re back in the New Year with an updated Bubble Map. Crude oil prices have gone up across the board since our last blog post on November 27. Differentials between WTI and most marker crudes have tightened, except for WCS. The WCS discount has deepened since before the holidays to $36 under WTI. Oversupply in the Mid Continent continues due to pipeline constraints and refinery maintenance, including BP Whiting. The oversupply problem will only be exacerbated when Imperial Oil Ltd.’s 110,000 barrels per day Kearl oil sands project starts producing in the next few weeks.