(Reuters) - State-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corp plans to borrow as much as $20 billion over the next five years to make up for an expected shortfall in funding, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing a person familiar with the matter. The firm will need the money to maintain the petrostate’s crude-production levels, the report said. Falling energy demand due to pandemic-driven lockdowns sent the oil-dependent economy of Kuwait, the fourth-biggest member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, into a tailspin in 2020. Kuwait Petroleum may face a deficit of 6 billion dinars ($19.88 billion) over five years, the report said, adding that the company plans to cover the shortfall by issuing debt, including on international markets. The situation will be reviewed every six months to assess the company’s needs and borrowing costs, according to the report. Kuwait Petroleum did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. ($1 = 0.3018 Kuwaiti dinars)