NEW YORK, April 29 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil exportsdoubled in February to a 13-year high of 124,000 barrels per day(bpd), government data showed on Monday, as shipments of surplusshale crude to Canada gathered pace.
Exports jumped from an average of around 60,000 bpd lastyear, and have soared from less than 10,000 bpd in 2002, asCanada's refineries increase pipeline, rail, and tankerdeliveries, monthly figures from the U.S. Energy InformationAdministration (EIA) showed.
The shale oil boom has upended the North American energymarket and created new cross-border trade flows, despitehistorical U.S. regulatory restrictions on the export of U.S.produced oil.
Commodity traders, oil multinationals and Canadianrefineries have taken advantage of allowances within the NorthAmerican Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) to increase exports asU.S. output has risen to a near 20-year high.
Oil major BP Plc secured U.S. government permission toship U.S. crude oil to Canada last October, while Royal DutchShell and other companies have also sought exportlicenses.
The United States will generally allow exports of crude ifthese are matched by the import of an equal volume of gasolineand diesel. ******************************************************U.S. crude exports graphic:******************************************************
Lighter shale oil is beneficial to Canadian refiners, whocan blend it with heavier, domestically-produced crudes tocreate blends for easier refining and pipeline transportation,or use it to replace more expensive imports from West Africa andthe Middle East.
Most of the exports have flowed from the Bakken oil fieldsin North Dakota to plants in Canada's east, which lack pipelineaccess to Alberta's oil sands and are dependent on foreigncrude. U.S. exports to Canada have also been shipped by tankerfrom the Gulf Coast or from the Eagle Ford fields in Texas.
The exports have not generated significant domesticopposition, since Canada remains a huge net exporter of oil tothe United States, sending around 2.7 million bpd south fromboth conventional and growing tar sands production.
But some experts say companies could face stiff politicalresistance if they press for permission to export U.S. crude tocountries further afield, even if many energy analysts see suchexports as beneficial to the U.S. economy.
The United States remains reliant on around 8 millionbarrels of crude oil imports every day, even as some predict theU.S. oil and gas boom could lead to North American energyindependence by the end of this decade.
