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Russian Deputy Prime Minister and Energy Minister Alexander Novak said, on Sunday, that the Organization of Petroleum Producing Countries (OPEC +) agreed to reduce its oil production during the year 2024 by 1.66 million barrels per day.
Following the announcement of a new agreement by the Organization of Petroleum Producing Countries “OPEC +” regarding the level of global production during the year 2024, Novak indicated that the agreement in addition to the OPEC decision in October 2022 means a total reduction in global oil production of 3.66 million barrels per day by the beginning of the year. Next.
"It is an important decision to extend the voluntary cuts announced by countries as of May 1, 2023, in order to achieve balance in the market," Novak said in remarks - reported by the Russian news agency "Tass" -.
He added, "The reduction is by 1.66 million barrels per day, in addition to what was announced last October, which amounted to two million barrels per day. The total is a reduction of 3.66 million barrels per day pledged by OPEC + countries to ensure the stability of the global market."
OPEC + member states agreed to reduce production levels during the year 2024 to reach 40.46 million barrels per day, according to the final statement after the meeting of energy ministers on Sunday.
The Russian Energy Minister said that for Russia, this decision means reducing its daily share in the global market by 650 thousand barrels over the next year, as its share will decrease from 10.478 million barrels to 9.828 barrels per day, according to the OPEC + statement.
Novak pointed out that Russia has already voluntarily reduced its oil production by 500 thousand barrels per day, and will extend this reduction throughout 2024, and it will be calculated from its share in the global market that was reduced to 9.828 million barrels per day as part of the agreement.
Novak added, "All the basic statistics that will be evaluated through the data of 6 independent sources will be available at a later time... Of course, we will use them for the general statistics of the OPEC secretariat, and according to the Russian Ministry of Energy, we have already reached the level of cuts of 500,000 barrels per day, and they will continue to implement them." existing agreements.
Novak stated that Russia announced its decision to voluntarily reduce oil production by 500,000 barrels per day last March and extended that until the end of this year, explaining that this step aims to reduce the discount on Russian oil and ensure stable supplies.
Novak confirmed that OPEC + member states can amend their decisions to achieve balance in the oil market if necessary, explaining that the next ministerial meeting will be held within 6 months next November, and the Ministerial Oversight Committee will continue to meet every two months.
Novak indicated that the OPEC + countries assess the current situation in the oil market as balanced and expect an increase in demand for oil and petroleum products in the summer period, noting that despite the different points of view, all OPEC + countries agree that the situation is somewhat balanced.
And he continued, saying: “There is a balance between supply and demand thanks to the decisions of OPEC +, and today we notice the growth of demand in 2023, especially now in the summer, when we see an increase in commercial activities in many countries and growth in shipments of cars and flights, and of course these are positive factors that enhance demand.” ".
According to Novak, OPEC+ countries continue to monitor the activities of central banks, the decisions of the US Federal Reserve, key rates, and demand in China after the emerging Corona virus pandemic.
In another context, Novak praised, on Sunday, the Murmansk natural gas project of Novatek, which will be linked to the unified gas supply system of the Russian company Gazprom.
Novak said that after scrutiny, the Murmansk project is in line with the Russian government's strategy to develop LNG production. Since it is well suited to the development of the Arctic sector and the LNG industry in general.
For its part, Iraq affirmed its commitment to the voluntary reduction in the level of oil production, which was approved by “OPEC +” (the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries “OPEC” and its allies) last April, and to extend it until the end of 2024.
And the Iraqi News Agency (INA) quoted a statement by the Ministry of Oil that, "The Republic of Iraq will extend its voluntary reduction of 211,000 barrels per day until the end of December 2024, as a precautionary measure, in coordination with the countries participating in the" OPEC + "agreement that had previously been announced in the month of December. April for voluntary cuts.
She added, "This voluntary cut will be from the required production level, as agreed upon at the thirty-fifth ministerial meeting of" OPEC + "on June 4, 2023."
The United Arab Emirates announced the extension of its voluntary reduction in oil production of 144,000 barrels per day until the end of December 2024 as a precautionary measure, in coordination with the countries participating in the (OPEC Plus) agreement.
Algeria announced the extension of a voluntary reduction in its oil production by 48,000 barrels per day until the end of next December.
And an official source in the Saudi Ministry of Energy announced, on Sunday, that as a precautionary measure, the Kingdom will extend the voluntary reduction in its crude oil production of 500,000 barrels per day until the end of December 2024.