Russia expects oil market to stabilize by summer

Russia’s Energy Minister Alexander Novak said reduced production of OPEC member-states and other oil-exporting countries agreed at a meeting in Vienna in December will stabilize the oil market by the summer.

The Russian Minister said this in an interview aired by the Rossiya-24 TV news channel on Tuesday, AFP reports.

“I think that the joint efforts agreed by OPEC and non-OPEC countries in December in Vienna will stabilize the situation, balance it in the first half (of 2019 – TASS). The demand will traditionally grow during the summer, which is why I think the market will be balanced,” he said.

OPEC+ ministers discussed the opportunity for oil output reduction in 2019 at the meeting in Vienna on December 5-7 for avoiding surplus offer of oil due to rising production in US and sanctions waivers for Iran.

The meeting ended with an arrangement to cut oil production by OPEC+ deal participants by 1.2 mln barrels per day. The ministers signed a new charter with no fixed term that will seal cooperation starting on January 1, 2019.