OPEC, non-OPEC allies to discuss long-term cooperation in June: UAE

London / Reuters

OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers, including Russia, will discuss extending their cooperation for many more years when they meet in June as they seek to avoid major market shocks, the UAE Minister of Energy and Industry, Suhail Mohammed Faraj Al Mazrouei said.
Al Mazrouei, who holds OPEC’s presidency this year, said leaders of the UAE, OPEC’s biggest producer Saudi Arabia and non-OPEC member Russia support extending energy cooperation beyond 2018. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries has agreed to extend oil supply cuts with Russia and other producers until the end of 2018.
Al Mazrouei said that he hoped a plan could be put to ministers at OPEC’s next meeting in June in Vienna, which non-OPEC producers participating in the supply-reduction agreement are expected to attend.
“I think the potential is huge for cooperation, whether it is focussed on the oil sector, or the broader energy sector,” Al Mazrouei said in an interview in London.
“We look forward to put something to the ministers hopefully the next time we see the whole group getting together.. hopefully in June.”
He said it was too early to say how cooperation will work exactly and whether oil production management would be maintained. But he added that market monitoring was the bare minimum the group would do to help avoid gluts or shortages.
“Definitely if this group continued to work together in the future that will enable the world economy to benefit and to grow and we could plan on avoiding any major surprises to the supply and demand imbalance,” he said. “I think this group will always continue to monitor the market.” Speaking later at an energy conference in London, Al Mazrouei said the global oil industry needs around $10 trillion of investment by 2040 to meet future demand growth. OPEC has delivered more than 100 percent of the output cuts that members pledged under the deal, according to figures from OPEC and other analysts.