The amount of crude oil due to be pumped from the North Sea fields will by 24% in August, field maintenance takes out swathes of production.

The big change comes in the amount of Forties crude to be loaded, according to provisional loading programs seen by The Wall Street Journal.

The Buzzard oil field, where Forties is produced and which is the U.K.'s biggest contributor to oil production, will be out of action for two weeks for scheduled maintenance work. Only four cargoes of Forties will be loaded in August, compared with 19 in July.

Other grades will increase loadings to compensate. There will be seven Brent cargoes in August, up from six in July, and seven of Oseberg, also up from six. Ekofisk will load 17 cargoes in August compared with 15 in July.

Loading programs are released and circulated among oil traders and brokers, but don't give a perfect indication of oil volume because they can be subject to change.

Brent crude is of international importance because it remains one of the most liquid markets and influences oil prices across the globe.

North Sea loading programs:

                  July 2014            August 2014 
             (barrels) Volume (B/D) (barrels) Volume (B/D) 
Brent       3,600,000   116,129     4,200,000   135,483 
Forties    11,400,000   367,742     2,400,000    77,419 
Oseberg     3,600,000   116,129     4,200,000   135,483 
Ekofisk     9,000,000   290,323    10,200,000   329,032 
Total BFOE 27,600,000   890,323    21,000,000   677,417

Write to Cassie Werber at cassie.werber@wsj.com, Twitter: @cassiewerber

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