Matthew Simmons calls on regional oil producers to curb output

Matthew Simmons, the controversial energy investment banker, has called on Middle East oil producers to reduce their oil production to extend the life of their reservoirs. Simmons, chairman of Simmons & Company International and a leading proponent of the theory of peak oil, which states that production has reached its peak and will decline, says Middle East states risk their reservoirs collapsing if they try to increase production. "We are past the peak," he says. "I think the big issue is shouldn't they [regional producers] lower the rate of production. Financially it would not be a problem as oil prices would shoot up, and the countries could produce longer for more money."

Simmons blames the industry's belief that new technologies will enhance production rates for the ambitious growth targets set by Middle East producers. Oman's Yibal field was once the sultanate's most productive field, with a capacity of 250,000 barrels a day (b/d) in the late 1990s. But with the introduction of horizontal drilling techniques, production has fallen to less than 80,000 b/d. An over-reliance on computer modelling and 3D seismic studies is also to blame, according to Simmons, as it creates unjustified optimism over potential reserves.

- The above probably doesn't make much sense unless you're a peakoiler and/or (preferably *and*) read Matt Simmons' book, Twilight in the Desert. There is a lot more in the book than what these two paragraphs can relate.

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