April 10, 2020 [Urdu Point – Published on April 10, 2020] – The gap in oil demand and supply as a result of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the Saudi-Russia oil price dispute has North American inventory at critically high levels, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney told reporters on Thursday.

“Our current estimate is that every square inch of storage in North America will be at tank tops in four to six weeks, based on current trends,” Kenney said.

Canadian officials have repeatedly said they are coordinating with their US counterparts to protect the North American energy sector.

Kenney has repeatedly bemoaned the effect the oil dispute is having on Alberta as it remains crippled by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and still struggling from the 2014 oil price crash.

Oil prices first plummeted in early March after OPEC+ exporters failed to agree on additional cuts or extend the deal limiting their production, dealing a blow to the market weakened by a fall in demand during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Moreover, Saudi Arabia and Russia failed to reach a deal on oil production cuts at their March meeting, triggering an oil price dispute, with Riyadh vowing to flood the market with oil and reportedly starting offering oil to European customers at huge discounts.

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