WASHINGTON, April 5 (UPI) -- Crude oil inventories at the Cushing, Okla., storage hub increased by to the highest level since 2009, the U.S. Energy Department said.
The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said crude oil inventories at Cushing, the delivery point for the New York Mercantile Exchange crude contract, increased 43 percent -- 12 million barrels -- from Jan. 13-March 30.
"This was the largest increase in inventories over an 11-week period since 2009," the EIA said.
The administration said the inventory increase was attributed to emptying the Seaway pipeline in advance of its planned reversal.
Enterprise Products Partners and Canadian pipeline company Enbridge Inc. in November agreed to reverse the direction of crude oil on the Seaway pipeline so it can carry oil from Cushing to refineries along the southern coast of the United States. Reversing crude oil deliveries on the 512-mile pipeline could reduce transportation costs and accelerate development of crude oil reserves in North America.
"While Cushing inventories are now approaching the record levels of 2011, the amount of available storage capacity at Cushing is much greater now than it was a year ago, relieving some of the pressure on demand for incremental storage capacity," the EIA said.
The announcement pushed NYMEX oil prices down about 2 percent.
