Crude production up, Russia says

MOSCOW, April 20 (UPI) -- Crude oil production from Russia is expected to boast modest gains in 2009 despite earlier forecasts of a decline in the industry, officials said.

The output of crude oil from Russia for 2008 and the first two months of 2009 fell about 1 percent, but March output saw a modest increase of 0.4 percent to 9.76 million barrels per day.

The Russian Energy Ministry said it expects that trend to continue for the rest of the year, with an increase of as much as 2 percent, the Platts news service reports.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, however, had predicted declines in crude output to 9.6 million barrels per day, or roughly 1.1 percent, as the global economic recession trickled over to oil field maintenance and production levels.

The Platts report said, however, that declining export duties and a plummeting value of the ruble may have prompted Russian oil producers to ramp up production in an effort to offset any losses.

Russia is the second-largest oil producer in the world and boasts proven oil reserves of around 60 billion barrels.