UPDATE: Novak: Early to speak about future of OPEC+ deal

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ST. PETERSBURG, Jun 24 (PRIME) -- It is early yet to speak about the future of the OPEC+ oil production cut agreement, it is necessary to wait for the G20 meeting, among other events, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak told reporters on Monday.

“It’s too early to speak, we need to wait for those events, including a meeting of G20 leaders: we will see what issues will be discussed there, how the economy, the market situation will develop. By a meeting of OPEC and non-OPEC states we’ll represent the situation more clearly, options will be proposed,” he said.

The Energy Ministry and Russian companies are yet discussing the common position on the fate of the deal, he added.

In November 2016, OPEC and non-OPEC states including Russia first agreed to reduce their oil output to rebalance the market. In December 2018, the participants of the deal decided to cut production by an additional 800,000 barrels per day for OPEC and 400,000 barrels per day for non-OPEC states, including 228,000 barrels per day for Russia, from the level of October 2018.

Energy Minister Pyarviz Shakhbazov said that Azerbaijan believes that OPEC+ states should prolong the oil cut production agreement at current terms if no new factors occur.

“I think that this format, the decisions that were made, and the agreements on production, which were reached at the end of last year for the first half of the year, should be continued. I think this is a minimum program,” he said.

OPEC+ states have a consensus on the future of the deal, Shakhbazov said.

Azerbaijan’s oil production in January–June will be within liabilities under the OPEC+ deal, he added.

Kazakh Energy Minister Kanat Bozumbayev also said he believes that the OPEC+ deal should be prolonged on current conditions.

He said it will not be very easy for OPEC+ states to agree on the deal prolongation in July, including due to positions of Iran and Venezuela.

Kazakhstan currently overfulfills obligations on oil production under the OPEC+ deal by 95,000–100,000 barrels of oil per day, he added. The country is satisfied with the oil price in the range of U.S. $60–70 per barrel, he also said.

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