The recent meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Al Saud, held on the sidelines of the G20 summit in the Japanese city of Osaka, could indicate their commitment to sustain market stability to support both members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
VIENNA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st July, 2019) The recent meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Al Saud, held on the sidelines of the G20 summit in the Japanese city of Osaka, could indicate their commitment to sustain market stability to support both members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-cartel oil producers, OPEC Secretary General Mohammed Barkindo told Sputnik.
"[The meeting between Russian] President Vladimir Putin and [Saudi] Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, which we very much welcome, could show the commitment of ... leaders to market stability, to support OPEC as well as the OPEC+ [and] to continue not only to maintain market stability but to sustain it for different seasons and different times," he said.
After meeting with the crown prince on Saturday, Putin said that the two countries had agreed on a common position on the future of the OPEC+ deal and would support its extension with the already agreed limits on oil production for a period of six or nine months.
Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Falih later said that prolonging the OPEC+ oil output cut agreement beyond June would help reduce commercial oil reserves and thus balance the global market.
In December, OPEC members together with non-cartel states, collectively refereed to as the OPEC+ group, agreed to cut overall oil production by 1.2 million barrels per day starting from 2019. OPEC pledged to reduce production by 800,000 barrels per day, while non-OPEC states agreed to cut it by 400,000 barrels per day. The deal expired on Sunday.
The Austrian capital of Vienna is hosting the 176th Meeting of the OPEC Conference on Monday. The deal's signatories will meet the following day in order to discuss a possible extension.
