UPDATE: Transneft CEO says Russia to cut oil output, not exports

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MOSCOW, Dec 14 (PRIME) -- Russia will only cut its oil production in the framework of an agreement with OPEC and non-OPEC states, but will not reduce exports, Nikolai Tokarev, CEO of Russian oil pipeline monopoly Transneft, told reporters on Wednesday after a meeting of oil companies with Energy Minister Alexander Novak.

OPEC and 11 non-OPEC countries, including Russia, agreed on December 11 to cut combined oil production by 1.8 million barrels a day in January–July 2017 in order to balance supply and demand. OPEC will reduce output by 1.2 million barrels daily, while Russia is to decrease the production by 300,000 barrels.

“We are talking about production, about reduction of production…We will fulfill all the export schedules and requests that will be filed, but I don’t think that (the exports) will fall significantly,” Tokarev said.

He also said that Russia will reduce daily oil output by 200,000 barrels in March 2017 and 300,000 barrels in April.

Ravil Maganov, first executive vice president for exploration and production at oil major Lukoil, said that all Russian oil companies will decrease their production in proportion to their share in the combined output.

Alexander Dyukov, CEO of oil company Gazprom Neft, said that local oil producers will be able to agree on production quotas on their own. “Agreements between the companies are possible, the main idea is that Russia’s oil production is to fall by 300,000 barrels a day. We are able to agree among ourselves,” he said.

Sudanese Oil Minsiter Zayed Awad told reporters that his country will cut production by 4,000 barrels per day to 129,000 barrels in 2017, and South Sudan will decrease daily production by 5,000 barrels to 133,000 barrels in the year.

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