Three of the Opec+ group's largest members today defended the decisions taken at their recent ministerial meeting, arguing that although oil prices fell early this week the market will eventually recover and see that the group's policy was correct.
The deal reached on 2 June extends all Opec+ crude production cuts into 2025 but with a caveat that the group could start to unwind, in stages, the 2.2mn b/d 'voluntary' cuts taken by some members over 12 months from October. Front-month Ice Brent crude prices have since the meeting fallen below $80/bl for the first time since February.
Speaking at a panel at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Saudi energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, Opec secretary general Haitham al Ghais, Russia's deputy prime minister Alexander Novak and UAE energy minister Suhail al-Mazrouei sought to present a unified front. But some frustration was apparent at the post-meeting reaction.
Prince Abdulaziz said Opec+ has not shifted its policy from "being the price fixer, as they [market observers or speculators] claim, to a market-share fighter, fighting for their market share. You know this [is] interchangeable." The Saudi minister reiterated that the agreement struck on 2 June retains an option to pause or reverse changes if necessary, and he criticised some unnamed bank analysts and media outlets for their interpretations of the recent agreement.
Secretary general al Ghais said he fails to understand why "certain people are bashing the agreement."
"For a while… we've been hearing and seeing the requirement for a clear roadmap of how these production adjustments are going to be phased out or tapered out," he said. "When we deliver that then it's confusing and becomes negative. So sometimes it's really hard to understand."
Al-Mazrouei reiterated the UAE's commitment to Opec+, "despite what you hear in the media." The UAE was the big winner from the most recent Opec+ meeting, securing another upgrade to its official production quota, this time by 300,000 b/d. A previous upwards adjustment of 200,000 b/d came into effect from January 2024.
Novak said the 2 June decisions "are very adequate, leading us in the right direction".
"They show us a certain promise and what we need to achieve within the energy markets, what is going to happen in third quarter and until the end of 2025," Novak said. "We're going to be able to respond to what is happening on the market and emerging uncertainties in a timely manner."
