* Statoil , Husky close Alberta facilities closed as
precaution
* CNOOC facility suffers damage, first for energy in
wildfire
* Saudi Arabia appoints Falish to replace veteran oil
minister Naimi
* Saudi move may be bearish long term, but selloff unlikely
now
By Barani Krishnan
NEW YORK, May 8 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose about 2 percent
in early Asian trading on Monday as supply outages persisted
over the weekend from Canada's wildfires that have shut half the
country's vast oil sands capacity.
Analysts were also digesting weekend news of Saudi Arabia's
appointment of a new energy minister to take over from veteran
oil minister Ali al-Naimi. The new appointee, Khalid al-Falih,
is a believer in reform and low oil prices.
Falih said on Sunday that the world's largest crude exporter
was committed to meeting demand and would maintain its stable
petroleum policies.
U.S. crude's West Texas Intermediate futures CLc1 were up
$1.05, or 2.3 percent, at $45.71 a barrel by 7:17 p.m. EDT (2317
GMT) in New York on Sunday. The session high in Singapore
trading was $45.94.
Brent crude futures LCOc1 rose 85 cents, or 1.9 percent,
to $46.22 a barrel, after peaking at $46.48.
"I think the wildfire is going to have a major impact as
Canada exports some 3.5 million barrels per day of crude to the
U.S.," said Carl Larry, director of business development for oil
and gas at Frost & Sullivan.
"I'm not sure if we'll get back to $80 a barrel, but $50 and
above looks likely," he said.
Crude prices have rebounded about 75 percent since hitting
12-year lows of around $27 a barrel or lower in the first
quarter, supported by falling U.S. production, unexpected supply
constraints in Libya - among others - and a weaker dollar.
World oil supply remains in a glut, however, with an
estimated oversupply of around 1.5 million bpd.
On Sunday, cooler weather, light rain and winds opposed to
the direction of flames helped control the advance of the blaze
that razed Alberta's oil sands boomtown Fort McMurray.
Yet, energy firms such as Statoil STL.OL and Husky Statoil
HSE.TO shut their facilities in the area as a precaution.
Eleven production firms and three pipeline operators that
have curbed activities after the week-long inferno forced more
than 1 million barrels in capacity offline.
Officials said the fire had also done minor damage at CNOOC
0883.HK unit Nexen's Long Lake facility, in the site's yard.
It was the first reported damage to an energy industry asset
since the crisis began.
Three major oil firms - BP (LON:BP), Suncor and Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) - have
warned they will not be able to deliver on some contracts for
Canadian crude.
While Falih's appointment as energy minister could be
bearish to oil in the longer term given the Saudis' increasing
reluctance to use market intervention to boost prices, traders
said the market was unlikely to sell off without further proof
of his actions.
"Between the Canadian wildfire and the regime change in
Saudi Arabia, there is a pronounced amount of uncertainty now,"
said John Kilduff, partner at New York energy firm Again
Capital. "In commodities, you buy uncertainty."