The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, on Monday, November 28, scrambled to rescue a deal to cut oil output as tensions grew among the producing members and non-OPEC member Russia, with top exporter Saudi Arabia saying markets would rebalance even without an agreement.
The cartel experts started a meeting in Vienna at 0900 GMT and were due to make recommendations to their ministers on how exactly OPEC should trim production when it meets on Nov. 30, Reuters reports.
Meanwhile, the Algerian and Venezuelan oil ministers were to travel to Moscow on Monday and Tuesday in a final attempt to persuade Russia to take part in cuts instead of merely freezing output, which has reached new highs in the past year.
In September, OPEC, which accounts for a third of global oil production, agreed to cap output at around 32.5-33.0 million barrels per day versus the current 33.64 million bpd to prop up oil prices, which have more than halved since mid-2014.
The meeting on Nov. 30 was expected to seal the deal, with Russia and some other non-OPEC producers such as Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan also contributing.
However, doubts emerged in recent weeks as OPEC’s No.2 and 3 producers, Iraq and Iran, expressed reservations about the mechanics of output reductions and Saudi Arabia voiced concern about Russia’s willingness to cut.
On Friday, OPEC canceled an experts meeting with non-OPEC producers scheduled for Nov. 28 after Saudi Arabia said the organisation needed to sort out its differences first.
Over the weekend, Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said oil markets would rebalance even without an output-limiting pact. He had previously said Riyadh was keen for a deal.
Doubts about OPEC’s ability to deliver promised cuts sent Brent crude down 2 percent initially on Monday to less than $47 a barrel. However, prices later recovered to trade up 1 percent after Iraq’s oil minister said he remained optimistic.
