OPEC + agreed to slightly increase production, but only in Russia and Kazakhstan

OPEC + agreed to slightly increase production, but only in Russia and Kazakhstan

The members of the oil cartel and their partners from the OPEC + alliance agreed on Tuesday to slightly increase production in February and March, but only in Russia and Kazakhstan. According to two sources from OPEC, Russia will increase production by 65,000 barrels in February and March and Kazakhstan by 10,000 barrels per day. And Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, will voluntarily reduce its production over the next two months in order to moderate the increase in production in Russia and Kazakhstan. It seeks to persuade other producers to keep production stable. OPEC fears that the new blockades will hit the demand for oil. The total reduction in production within the alliance will thus reach 7.125 million barrels (1 barrel = 159 liters) per day in February and 7.05 million barrels / day in March. In January 2021, under the December agreement, the members of the group reduced their production by 7.2 million barrels per day. At the same time, Saudi Arabia has called for caution in the oil sector over the new coronavirus pandemic and the associated blockades. The unusually complicated agreement between the OPEC + alliance, which brings together 13 producers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and their 10 allies, led by Russia, follows a difficult debate that has been extended to two days. Russia and Kazakhstan have pushed for the group to increase production by 500,000 barrels a day since February, while the others did not want any increase. On Monday (January 4), Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salmán pointed to the still fragile demand for fuel and the unpredictable impact of the new coronavirus strain. It first appeared at the end of last year in Britain and South Africa and has already spread around the world. Since January 2017, OPEC + producers have been limiting their production to support oil prices and restore balance to a market where supply exceeds demand. The rest of the world's largest producers from the OPEC + alliance will leave mining unchanged at the January level.