Arab oil producers say OPEC+ should stick to current output agreement

RIYADH: OPEC+ should stick to its current agreement to add 400,000 barrels of oil per day each month to output, ministers of Arab oil-producing countries said on Sunday as they gathered in Saudi Arabia, rejecting calls to pump more to ease pressure on prices.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies led by Russia, a group known as OPEC+, agreed on Feb. 2 to stick to moderate rises in oil output, citing persistent uncertainty.

The Saudi energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman told an industry conference in Riyadh the pandemic and the recovery underway “have taught us the value of caution”.

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“Caution, a word that I know some people hate me for, but... I will continue being cautious, and (mindful of) the need to retain flexibility in our strategy and adopt a long-term perspective,” Prince Abdulaziz said. The minister was speaking at a conference attended also by the UAE and Bahraini energy ministers, the Iraqi and Kuwaiti oil ministers and Egypt’s petroleum minister.

The OPEC+ alliance was already struggling to meet existing targets, and has been under pressure from top consumers calling for more crude to cap surging prices amid fears over possible supply disruptions resulting from the Russian military presence at Ukraine’s borders.