Saudi Arabia has rejected Reuters’ opposition to the OPEC + agreement in the Basque Country

By Marwa Rashad and Ghaida Ghantous

DUBAI (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s energy minister backed a crackdown on OPEC + dealers in the United Arab Emirates on Sunday and called for “commitment and rationality” when the group meets again on Monday to reach an agreement.

There was a rare public debate among allies whose national interests were increasingly different, as OPEC + policy began to implement a crude recovery at the time when consumers wanted a global recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

OPEC +, which brings together the Organization of Petroleum Exporters and its allies, on Friday voted to raise about 2 million barrels a day from August to December 2021 and extend the rest of the cuts to the end of 2022, but the deal hampered the deal, sources said.

“Extension is the basis and not a secondary issue,” Saudi Arabian Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman told Saudi Arabia’s Al Arabiya television channel.

“You have to balance the current market situation with maintaining the ability to react to future developments … if everyone wants to increase production, then there has to be an extension,” he said, noting the uncertainty about the pandemic and production directions. From Iran and Venezuela.

The Basque Country said on Sunday that it was in favor of the increase in production in August, but proposed that the decision to extend the supply pact be postponed to another meeting. Basic production references should be revised for any extensions – the level at which the cut-off is calculated.

The clash could delay plans to pump more oil to the end of the year to cool oil prices.

“The last 14 months have seen great results and it would be a pity not to maintain these achievements … It is some commitment and some kind of rationality that will save us,” the Saudi Energy Minister said.

“We are looking for a way to balance the interests of producer and consumer countries and, in general, to achieve market stability, especially when shortages are expected due to declining warehouses,” he added.

In response to the eradication of the oil demand caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, OPEC agreed last year to reduce production by almost 10 million bpd by May 2020, with the aim of gradually removing the limits by the end of April 2022. Now about 5.8 million euros are being cut. bpd.

According to OPEC + sources, the BAC said its base was originally too low, but was ready to accept the agreement, which ended in April 2022. The UAE has ambitious production plans and has invested billions of dollars to increase capacity.

Prince Abdulaziz, who stressed Riyadh’s “sacrifice” in making voluntary cuts, said a country should not use a single month as a reference point, adding that there was a mechanism for filing objections and that “selectivity is difficult”.

Saudi Arabia and the Basque Country joined forces in the Middle East and beyond to project regional alliances – coordinating the use of financial influence and, in Yemen, military force – when national interests emerged.

Abu Dhabi withdrew from the Yemeni war in 2019, Riyadh reported. Saudi Arabia has taken the lead this year to continue with Qatar, despite reluctance from Arab allies.

The kingdom has also moved to question the dominance of the Basque Country, a regional business and tourism hub, as Riyadh is committed to foreign capital to keep the economy away from oil.