OPEC chief urges more non-member cooperation in oil output cuts

OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo on Wednesday called for increased cooperation from non-OPEC members to help stabilize oil markets.

All parties in last year’s agreement to cut output are committed to doing their part, he said, noting that the six members of the GCC are “actively involved” in restoring stability to the oil market.

Rebalancing the global oil market is still a “work in progress,” Barkindo added, speaking at the GCC Petroleum Media Forum in Abu Dhabi.

OPEC agreed with non-member producers last December to cut oil output by a combined 1.8 million barrels a day (mbd), as part of efforts to tackle the market oversupply and boost prices. So far, Saudi Arabia has taken on the bulk of the cuts, with an output allocation of 10.06 mbd.

Members of OPEC and non-member producers together achieved a compliance rate of 94 percent with the supply cut deal in February, an increase of 8 percentage points when compared to January.

The producer group will examine whether the six-month production agreement should be extended at its upcoming meeting on May 25. 

Write to Reem Abdellatif at reem.a@argaam.com and

Jerusha Sequeira at jerusha.s@argaamnews.com