The member-countries of the Organization for Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) unanimously support the extension of an output cut deal with Russia and other non-OPEC oil producers, TASS reported citing three sources in delegations familiar with ongoing talks.
According to the state-run news agency’s sources, OPEC members were willing to talk about extending the deal, known as OPEC+, for three to six months after March 2020, when it expires.
“The extension [of the agreement] after March is the least we can do. But most likely we will not increase the reduction volume,” one of the sources told TASS.
The source specified that one of the options is a six-month extension. Another source told TASS that the probable term of extension is 3 months — until June 2020.
“Then there will be a new meeting, we will decide what to do next,” the source said.
A high-ranking source added that not only OPEC, but also OPEC+ countries “agreed to extend production reduction after March.”
Russia’s position on this issue has also been negotiated, another source familiar with the course of internal negotiations said. However, Russia’s Energy Ministry declined to comment on this information.
OPEC+ countries (24 oil exporting countries, including Russia) have been coordinating production management since 2017. At a meeting in July, they extended the agreement to reduce oil production by 1.2 million barrels per day against the level of October 2018. The agreement is valid until the end of March 2020.
