Brent crude prices are currently hovering around $80 per barrel (Shutterstock)

A committee of OPEC Plus ministers did not make any recommendations to change the bloc's production policy during Thursday's meeting.

Ministers from major producers in the OPEC+ alliance - which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies led by Russia - met online on Thursday to discuss fundamental factors in the market.

The committee - called the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee - can call a full meeting of OPEC Plus, or make recommendations on production policy.

OPEC said in a statement issued after the meeting, “The Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee reviewed crude oil production data for the months of November and December 2023 and noted the great commitment of countries participating in OPEC and outside it.”

The statement stated that the committee will meet on April 3rd.

The Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee usually meets every two months, and includes the main producers within OPEC Plus, including Saudi Arabia, Russia and the UAE.

Reuters quoted two OPEC Plus sources as saying on Thursday that the alliance will consider in early March whether to extend the voluntary oil production cuts amounting to 2.2 million barrels per day, which are scheduled to expire at the end of the current quarter of the year.

Saudi Arabia alone participates in nearly half of these cuts, at a rate of one million barrels per day.

If these cuts are cancelled, OPEC Plus will begin returning 2.2 million barrels per day to the market starting from the beginning of next April, while maintaining the previously agreed upon production cuts of 3.66 million barrels per day.

Riyadh said the cuts may continue after the first quarter if necessary. Previous decisions to extend the voluntary cuts were taken at least a month before their implementation.

The Saudi government - in an announcement described as surprising - directed the state oil company Aramco to stop its plan to expand its oil capacity and target a maximum sustainable production capacity of 12 million barrels per day, that is, one million barrels per day less than the goal announced in 2020.

Brent crude prices have hovered above $80 per barrel since January 24, supported by geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

Middle East unrest

Meanwhile, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday that the OPEC+ group is ready to take a decision to support the oil market “at any moment.”

“It is very important that there is continuous monitoring of the current situation so that we can at any moment make joint decisions to adjust our unified procedures aimed at achieving balance in the market,” Novak said, pointing to tensions in the Middle East and attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

He added, "It is clear that the market situation is greatly affected today by what is happening in the Middle East," but he also said that the global market is generally stable.

Source: Reuters