Get 40% Off
🤯 This Tech Portfolio is up 29% YTD! Join Now to Get April’s Top PicksGet The Picks – Just 99 USD

OPEC, allies agree to deepen oil output cuts

Published 12/05/2019, 04:31 PM
Updated 12/05/2019, 04:31 PM
© Reuters. Russian Energy Minister Novak arrives at the OPEC headquarters in Vienna

© Reuters. Russian Energy Minister Novak arrives at the OPEC headquarters in Vienna

By Rania El Gamal, Alex Lawler and Ahmad Ghaddar

VIENNA/LONDON (Reuters) - Oil producers led by Saudi Arabia and Russia agreed on Thursday to cut output by an extra 500,000 barrels a day for the final three months of their deal to curb supply but stopped short of pledging action beyond next March.

The countries involved pump over 40% of the world's oil, and their new combined cuts amount to 1.7 million bpd or 1.7% of global production.

A panel of energy ministers representing the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC producers led by Russia recommended the deeper cut on Thursday, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said.

"We really do see some risks of oversupply in the first quarter due to lower seasonal demand for refined products and for crude oil," Novak said.

Details of the agreement and how the cuts will be distributed among producers still need to be ratified at meetings in Vienna of both OPEC and a wider OPEC+ group of 24 producers.

OPEC's deliberations stretched into a fifth hour on Thursday, prompting it to cancel plans for a press conference and a gala dinner for delegates aboard a boat on the Danube. OPEC+ will meet on Friday.

Some OPEC ministers, concerned that a slowing economy could hurt demand, had called for a deal that would last until June or December 2020.

"This should ensure a $60-$65 Brent oil price in the seasonally weak period of next year," said Gary Ross, founder of Black Gold Investors.

At their last meeting in July, OPEC and partners agreed to an extension of nine months.

The latest deal represents a compromise between de facto OPEC leader Saudi Arabia and Russia, the world's top oil exporters. Sources have told Reuters Moscow was reluctant to deepen cuts while Riyadh wanted them deeper and longer.

Saudi Arabia needs higher oil prices to support its budget and the initial public offering (IPO) of state oil firm Saudi Aramco, which is expected to begin trading this month.

On Thursday, the IPO was priced at the top of its price range, raising $25.6 billion and making it the world's biggest IPO.

Russia and Saudi Arabia have led OPEC+ agreements to voluntary reduce supply since 2017 to counter booming output from the shale fields of the United States, which has become the world's biggest producer.

Producers face another year of rising output from the United States along with other non-OPEC producers Brazil and Norway.

Another complication for OPEC as it attempts to measure what members should pump this year is that two members, Iran and Venezuela, are under U.S. sanctions that have severely constrained their ability to export.

Iran, Libya and Venezuela are exempt from cutting output while OPEC's other 11 members are participating.

Novak said on Thursday OPEC+ producers would meet again in March to decide policy, when factors could include the run-up to November's U.S. presidential election.

OPEC's cuts have supported oil prices at around $50-$75 per barrel over the past year. Brent crude futures on Thursday extended this week's gains to trade above $63 per barrel.

COMPLIANCE

OPEC sources said Riyadh, which has been cutting more than required to help OPEC+ meet its overall target, was pressing Iraq and Nigeria to improve their compliance with quotas. Full compliance could provide an additional reduction of up to 400,000 bpd.

"Saudi Arabia is pushing for deeper cuts to try and shore up prices. However, deeper compliance is imperative and hence the deal will last only for one quarter so that they can assess compliance then," said Amrita Sen, co-founder of Energy Aspects.

Novak also said OPEC agreed to allow all OPEC+ members to exclude condensate from their oil output calculations, same as OPEC does with its own figures. Condensate is a high-value light type of crude oil extracted as a by-product of gas production.

For Russia, it means that some 760,000 bpd of condensate would be excluded from calculations, meaning Russian baseline production used for cuts would decline to around 10.66 million bpd from 11.42 million.

© Reuters. Russian Energy Minister Novak arrives at the OPEC headquarters in Vienna

(Graphic: OPEC's share of global oil supply shrinks link: https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/ce/7/6035/6018/Pasted%20Image.jpg).

Latest comments

tomorrow buy the second wash and ride it for 10 tick..
let the global price fixing commence.
there economies are dependent on oil only. cut the flow and impact your cash inflows
is it positive sign of buying crude oil?
Don't think
Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.