Global refinery capacity expanded by 0.8 million barrels daily in 2015-OPEC

World refinery capacity expanded by 0.8 million barrels per day (mb/cd) to stand at 96.6 mb/cd in 2015, the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has said.

The organisation revealed through its Annual Statistical Bulletin 2016 that growth in refinery capacity was driven mainly by expansion in capacity in the Middle East and Asia Pacific regions.

In the Middle East, expansion came largely from OPEC Member Countries, while in the Asia Pacific region growth came predominantly from India and China, the report said.

Refinery capacity in the OECD continued to decline despite small gains seen in the United States. Global refinery throughput ramped up by 2.4 per cent to reach 80.5 mb/d in 2015, with the largest gains seen in the Middle East and Asia Pacific regions. In the Middle East, gains in refinery throughput originated in OPEC MCs, while India and China dominated the increases seen in the Asia Pacific region.

The OPEC Reference Basket averaged $49.49/b in 2015, down from $96.29/b in 2014 and dropping to the lowest yearly average observed since 2004. The yearly decline was valued at $46.80/b, or 48.6 per cent, compared with 2014. Volatility in 2015 stood at $8.50/b, or 17.2 per cent, relative to the yearly average. The oil market has remained in contango since 2H14 and throughout 2015.