Syncrude Sweet Rises Against WTI on Upgrader Output Reduction

Syncrude Sweet oil strengthened to its highest level in more than a month against the U.S. benchmark as Syncrude Canada Ltd. was said to have cut November production by 300,000 barrels after an equipment failure.

The joint-venture company, which operates the largest oil sands mine in Alberta, cut production to 8.6 million barrels from 8.9 million after an equipment failure at a crusher, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.

Cheryl Robb, a Syncrude spokeswoman, and Alison Trollope, a spokeswoman for Canadian Oil Sands Ltd., Syncrude’s largest owner, declined to comment.

Syncrude Sweet for December delivery rose $1.75 a barrel to trade at a $2.25 discount to benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude, according to Net Energy Inc., a physical oil broker based in Calgary.

Syncrude Sweet is a light synthetic oil produced from oil sands bitumen. Syncrude Canada Ltd.’s 350,000-barrel-a-day upgrader near Fort McMurray, Alberta, produced an average of 320,500 barrels a day in October.

Canadian Oil Sands Ltd. owns 36.7 percent of Syncrude Canada Ltd., Imperial Oil Ltd. 25 percent and Suncor Energy Inc. 12 percent. China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., Nexen Inc., Murphy Oil Corp. and Mocal Energy Ltd. each own stakes of less than 10 percent.

To contact the reporter on this story: Edward Welsch in Calgary at ewelsch1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dan Stets at dstets@bloomberg.net