India hopes that Russia can convince the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to ensure more market-oriented prices for oil and gas in the long term, Dharmendra Pradhan, India's minister of petroleum and natural gas, told Sputnik
ABU DHABI (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th November, 2019) India hopes that Russia can convince the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to ensure more market-oriented prices for oil and gas in the long term, Dharmendra Pradhan, India's minister of petroleum and natural gas, told Sputnik.
In August, Pradhan met with Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak in Moscow, during which the former expressed his hope that Russia, as an OPEC+ member, would play an important role in ensuring adequate oil supply in the global market and establishing reasonable pricing.
"We are of this agreement ... We know Russia is playing a very constructive role in the OPEC+ forum. Here we are not in a business of newspaper editing, we are in a business of governance, so there is no deadline. In a governance model, you have to negotiate, you have to discuss, you have to find [the] way, and we are confident that all leaders envision that," the minister said, when asked about how Russia could potentially influence OPEC policies in terms of supply and pricing.
In December, OPEC member states and other oil producing countries, together known as OPEC+, agreed to reduce overall production by 1.2 million barrels per day in the first half 2019 to stabilize oil prices. The cartel pledged to cut production by 800,000 barrels per day, while non-OPEC countries agreed to reduce it by 400,000 barrels per day. In July, the agreement was extended on the same terms until April 2020.
