Iraqi Oil Minister Jabar al-Luaibi said on Saturday that the Opec member's oil output capacity is nearing 5 million barrels per day, but the country will remain in full compliance with its output target under a global pact to cut supplies.
Luaibi said the supply cut agreement between Opec and non-Opec producers should continue despite a rise in oil prices. "The market now is not 100 percent stable," he said at an industry conference in Abu Dhabi, adding that current oil prices could be sustained, but there might be some fluctuations. For the week, Brent crude rose 3.3 percent, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude jumped 4.7 percent, having hit its hit its strongest since late 2014 at $64.77 on Thursday.
The deal between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and Russia to cut 1.8 million barrels per day of crude, which started in January 2017, is due to last until the end of 2018. Luaibi said current Iraq's oil production is about 4.3 million barrels per day. Despite the increase in oil production from the United States, "so far there is a balance" in the oil market, Luaibi said.