据 World Oil网伦敦4月2日消息 沙特阿美公司周一公布了近40年前国有化以来的首个利润数据，揭开了其大型油田的神秘面纱。该公司的债券招股说明书显示，Ghawar的日产能上限为380万桶，远低于市场普遍认为的每日逾500万桶。

美国能源信息署是一家经常被石油市场用作基准提供统计信息的政府机构。2004年，沙特阿美在华盛顿的一份报告中表示，该油田的日产量超过500万桶且至少从过去10年就一直这样做。

Ghawar新的最高产量意味着美国的二叠纪根据政府数据，该国上月的石油日产量为410万桶，已是全球最大的产油盆地。这种对比并不准确即沙特油田是一个常规的储层，而二叠纪是一个非常规的页岩地层，但它显示了市场力量平衡的变化。

Safaniyah油田成立于1951年，至今仍是世界上最大的海上油田，日产能130万桶。沙特阿美总共运营着101个油田。

沙特阿美石油最大产能为1200万桶/天——正如利雅得多年来所说的那样。沙特在与科威特共享的所谓“中立区”，还可获得每日50万桶的产能。

尽管招股说明书确认了总最大产能，但油田间的产能分配与市场此前的预期不同。作为一项政策，沙特阿拉伯将其石油日产量保持在100万桶至200万桶左右，仅在战争、其它地区的供应中断或异常强劲的需求期间使用。

沙特阿美还披露了前五大油田的储量，显示其中一些油田的寿命比此前预计的要短。以Ghawar为例，其剩余石油储量为48.2万桶，按最高产量计算，还将持续34年。尽管如此，随着时间的推移，企业往往能够通过部署新技术或新技术来增加储量。

沙特的石油储量足以再维持52年的产量，最高产能为1200万桶/天。

吴慧丹    摘译自    World Oil

原文如下：

Saudi Aramco reveals sharp output drop at its major fields

When Saudi Aramco on Monday published its first ever profit figures since its nationalization nearly 40 years ago, it also lifted the veil of secrecy around its mega oil fields. The company’s bond prospectus revealed that Ghawar is able to pump a maximum of 3.8 MMbpd―well below the more than 5 MMbpd that had become conventional wisdom in the market.

The Energy Information Administration, a U.S. government body that provides statistical information and often is used as a benchmark by the oil market, listed Ghawar’s production capacity at 5.8 MMbpd in 2017. Aramco, in a presentation in Washington in 2004 also said the field was pumping more than 5 MMbpd and had been doing so since at least the previous decade.

The new maximum production rate for Ghawar means that the Permian in the U.S., which pumped 4.1 MMbpd last month according to government data, is already the largest oil production basin. The comparison isn’t exact―the Saudi field is a conventional reservoir, while the Permian is an unconventional shale, formation―yet it shows the shifting balance of power in the market.

Safaniyah, found in 1951 and still today the world’s largest offshore oil field with capacity of 1.3 MMbpd. In total, Aramco operates 101 oilfields.

Saudi Aramco is able to pump a maximum of 12 MMbpd―as Riyadh has said for several years. The kingdom has access to another 500,000 bpd of output capacity in the so-called neutral zone shared with Kuwait.

While the prospectus confirmed the overall maximum production capacity, the split among fields is different to what the market had assumed. As a policy, Saudi Arabia keeps about 1 MMbpd to 2 MMbpd of its capacity in reserve, using it only during wars, disruptions elsewhere or unusually strong demand.

Aramco also disclosed reserves at its top-five fields, revealing that some of them have a shorter lifespan than previously thought. Ghawar, for example, has 48.2 Bbbl of oil left, which would last another 34 years at the maximum rate of production. Nonetheless, companies are often able to boost the reserves over time by deploying new techniques or technology.

In total, the kingdom enough for another 52 years of production at the maximum capacity of 12 MMbpd.