The Al Ittihad paper quoted the country's leading crude producer, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOK), as saying that maintenance at three oil fields in the emirate of Abu Dhabi - Umm Shaif and Upper and Lower Zakum - would force the OPEC country to cut its output by some 600,000 barrels per day.
According to ADNOK, which produces some 2.5 million barrels a day, and supplies mainly Asian markets, the planned reduction had been coordinated with consumers. The company added that the maintenance work would take as little time as possible, without specifying the deadline.
The UAE ranks third among Gulf countries in terms of proven oil reserves, after Saudi Arabia and Iraq, and plans to increase its output to 4 million barrels a day by 2010.
