Saudi Energy Minister: Current OPEC+ agreement to continue ‎until end of 2023‎

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said that the current OPEC+ agreement on oil production will remain in effect until the end of the year, adding that he remains cautious about the outlook for Chinese demand.

In an interview with the Energy Aspects website, the minister said, “OPEC + cannot change its decisions until after making sure that the demand signals are sustainable.”

OPEC +, which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia, agreed in October to reduce oil production targets by two million barrels per day until the end of 2023.

Prince Abdulaziz said in the interview, “The OPEC + agreement to reduce production will continue until the end of 2023, because we will not increase production only on initial signs of demand.”

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said in a monthly report on Tuesday that global oil demand will rise this year by 2.32 million barrels per day, or 2.3%.

Moreover, expectations increased by 100,000 barrels per day compared to the organization’s expectations last month

OPEC raised its forecast for global oil demand growth in 2023 in its first upward revision in months, citing China’s easing of anti-Covid-19 restrictions and slightly stronger prospects for the global economy.

But the minister said, “I cannot predict about demand, and I will believe the growth of demand when I see it.”

“Regardless of the trends that you see, if you follow the cautious approach, you should not only see the beginning of a positive trend on the horizon, but rather make sure that these positive signs for this market can continue,” he said.

He added, “The Chinese economy opens and because of that you will have a request … But we all went through cycles of opening and closing, and therefore what are the guarantees (we have), as well as the world, that nothing of what we went through, each of us, every country?”

The UAE, a major member of OPEC, confirmed this week that there is no great need for the group to change its course, as its energy minister, Suhail Al Mazrouei, said during a statement to Bloomberg TV in Dubai that global supply and demand for oil are identical. With a comfortable position for stocks, considering that crude price levels are “evidence of balance.”