Report: OPEC deal mins to decide on prolongation when term ends

MOSCOW, Oct 6 (PRIME) – Ministers of OPEC states and other countries participants in an oil output reduction agreement unanimously agree that a decision on the future of the deal must be made when the current term is about to finish, Energy Minister Alexander Novak told channel Rossiya 24 in an interview broadcast on Friday.

He also said that the next ministerial meeting will take place in late November. “There we will discuss in more detail issues of future cooperation after the term for which the deal is concluded ends. We agreed that we have such an option in principle and there are opportunities of prolongation but a decision must be made closer to the end, finalization of the deal to understand the forecasts, the market state more clearly.”

OPEC states agreed to reduce their oil production by 1.2 million barrels daily to 32.5 million barrels in November 2016. Russia joined the agreement in December with a promise to cut output by 300,000 barrels daily compared with the level of October 2016. The agreement was concluded for January–June and was prolonged for nine more months in May.

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