UAE says additional oil cuts should be enough to balance market

Dubai: Additional oil output and export cuts made by Saudi Arabia and Russia earlier this week should be enough to help balance the oil market, UAE’s energy minister Suhail Al Mazrouei told reporters on Wednesday.

OPEC+, a group comprising the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies including Russia which pumps around 40 per cent of the world’s crude, has been cutting oil output since November in the face of flagging prices.

Saudi Arabia surprised the oil market last month by announcing an additional 1 million barrel-a-day production cut, on top of supply curbs the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies announced in previous months. On Monday, the kingdom extended that reduction into August and was joined by Russia, which pledged to curtail exports by 500,000 barrels a day that month.

Yet the move only briefly lifted the market. On Wednesday, benchmark Brent futures traded more than 1 per cent down at $75.30 per barrel, lower than the $80-$100 per barrel than most OPEC nations need to balance their budgets.

“This (the latest addition output cuts) is enough to assess the market and look at the market balance,” Mazrouei told reporters, adding that the UAE would not be contributing to fresh cuts.

UAE won't make extra voluntary OPEC+ output cuts

The UAE won't be making further voluntary OPEC+ oil production cuts at the present time, said the country's energy minister.

The UAE is "doing enough" to contribute to the OPEC+ supply curbs, Mazrouei said. He noted the large difference between the nation's current output and its full capacity of 4 million barrels a day.