CAIRO (Reuters) – OPEC+ members sharply cut output targets agreed this month on Sunday after the White House stepped up a war of words with Saudi Arabia and accused Riyadh of coercing support from other countries. lined up to support movement.
The US said last week that the cuts would boost Russia’s foreign revenues and suggested Saudi Arabia had planned it for political reasons, but denied on Sunday that it was supporting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz said the Kingdom will seek stability and balance in the oil market, including by establishing and maintaining an OPEC+ alliance agreement that includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other major oil producers, including Russia. said he was working hard to help
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Prince Khalid bin Salman, the kingdom’s defense minister and son of King Salman, also unanimously rejected the October 5 decision to cut production by 2 million barrels per day (bpd) despite tight oil markets. agreed and based on economic factors.
His comments were supported by ministers of several OPEC+ member countries, including the United Arab Emirates.
Gulf Energy Minister Suhail Al-Mazroui tweeted: “The latest unanimously endorsed OPEC+ decision is a purely technical decision with no political intention whatsoever. I want to do it,’ he wrote.
His comments follow a statement by Iraq’s state oil marketer SOMO.
“The best approach to address the oil market situation during this time of uncertainty and lack of clarity is a preemptive approach that supports market stability and provides the guidance needed for the future,” said OPEC. There is complete consensus among the Plus member countries,” said a SOMO statement.
Kuwait Petroleum Corporation CEO Nawaf Saud Al-Sabah also welcomed the decision by OPEC+ and said the country was keen to maintain a balanced oil market, the state news agency said. KUNA reported.
Oman and Bahrain said in separate statements that OPEC had unanimously agreed to the cuts.
Meanwhile, Algeria’s Energy Minister Mohammed al-Qab called the decision “historic” and he and OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al-Ghais expressed their full confidence in it, Algeria’s Enahar TV reported.
Geiss later said at a press conference that the organization is targeting a balance between supply and demand rather than a specific price.
In a statement to Reuters on Monday, Al-Qab added that OPEC+’s decision was a “purely technical response based purely on economic considerations” and was adopted unanimously.
Oil inventories in major countries are lower than they were when OPEC cut production in the past.
Some analysts say recent crude oil market volatility could be rectified by rate cuts to help lure investors into the underperforming market.
U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Thursday that “several” OPEC members felt pressured by Saudi Arabia to vote, saying the cuts would boost Russia’s revenues and boost Ukraine’s vote in February. It added that it would blunt the effectiveness of the sanctions imposed on the invasion.
In a speech to the kingdom’s advisory body, the Shura Council, King Salman said the country was a peace broker and had emphasized the crown prince’s initiative to free prisoners of war from Russia last month.
President Khalid bin Salman said on Sunday he was “surprised” by claims that his country “stands with Russia in the war against Ukraine”.
“It speaks to these false accusations not coming from the Ukrainian government,” he wrote on Twitter.
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Reporting by Moataz Mohamed, Yasmin Hussien, Maha El Dahan, Aziz El Yaakoubi Additional reporting in London by Nayera Abdallah, Ahmed Tolba, Ahmad Ghaddar Editing by Louise Heavens, Will Dunham, Alexandra Hudson, David Goodman
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