OPEC+ accelerates oil production increases
Eight OPEC+ countries announced on Thursday their decision to move forward with the plan to gradually increase oil output by 411,000 barrels per day in May. This move comes as part of the agreement between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, led by Russia, to phase out the most recent layer of output cuts.
Initially, these eight OPEC+ members were scheduled to raise output by 135,000 barrels per day in May. However, after an online meeting held on Thursday, the decision was made to boost output by 411,000 bpd in May due to the “continuing healthy market fundamentals and the positive market outlook.”
According to OPEC, this increase includes the originally planned increment for May along with two additional monthly increments. The group also stated that these gradual increases may be paused or reversed depending on evolving market conditions.
This May increase is part of the plan agreed upon by Russia, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Iraq, Algeria, Kazakhstan, and Oman to gradually unwind the recent output cut of 2.2 million bpd that took effect this month. Additionally, OPEC+ has other output cuts amounting to 3.65 million bpd that will remain in place until the end of next year to support the market.
