§ Mr. Skeetasked the Secretary of State for Energy how much United Kingdom-derived crude oil is being sold on the Rotterdam market and what is the current price range obtainable per barrel for light gravity oil; how much crude oil the property of United Kingdom companies is being sold on the Rotterdam market, and how the volume compares with six months to 12 months ago; and what is the current price differential between sales of crude oil in the United Kingdom and spot prices on the Rotterdam market.
§ Mr. BennFigures for total crude oil exports from the United Kingdom to the Netherlands, by weight, volume and price are given in the overseas trade statistics of the United Kingdom. United Kingdom and non-United Kingdom ownership are not distinguished. The latest figures are for December 1978, when there were 427W no exports to the Netherlands. The figures for June 1978 were 108,000 tonnes value £6.1 million and for December 1977, nil. There is no means of ascertaining whether any of this oil was for resale at Rotterdam, but such sales are likely to have been small since Rotterdam is primarily a products market. The volume of crude sales there is inadequate to establish a representative spot price.