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OPEC, allies seek deeper output cuts: Sources

Thursday, 05 December 2019 11:09 AM [ Last Update: Thursday, 05 December 2019 11:37 AM ]

This file photo shows the logo of OPEC at the inter-governmental organization’s headquarters in Vienna. (By AFP)

Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies are seeking to extend production cuts by more than 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) from their current 1.2 million bpd amid a slowing global economy and abundant crude reserves.

Reuters cited sources within the OPEC as saying that the 14-members organization and a group of allied non-OPEC producers led by Russia (collectively known as OPEC+) are expected to take the decision on the planned cuts in a two-day meeting in Vienna, beginning on Thursday.

Russia and other non-OPEC producers will join the gathering on Friday.

Last December, member states had agreed on cutting 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd) that was already extended at OPEC's last meeting in July.

On Wednesday, Iraqi Oil Minister Thamer Ghadhban, whose country is the second-largest oil producer of OPEC, told CNBC in Vienna that the current cuts are not enough, and the group should cut 400,000 more.

The OPEC+ has repeatedly stated its goal of securing a fair and stable price for producers.

However, the group has faced challenges following a Yemeni attack on Saudi Arabia’s Aramco facilities, and the record-breaking output of producers outside OPEC, including the US, Canada and Norway.

That larger group, known as OPEC plus, had been expected to extend an existing agreement to cut 1.2 million barrels a day through June. The agreement had been set to expire in March.

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