IEF Chief Praises Oil Producers Postponing Decision On New Production Cuts Until December

Faizan Hashmi Published November 13, 2018 | 06:55 PM

International Energy Forum (IEF) Secretary General Sun Xiansheng told Sputnik on Tuesday that the next session of the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other members of oil output freeze deal, slated for December, is the right time to determine new levels of oil production cuts.

"Yes, in December they will have a meeting of the group as a whole.

ABU DHABI (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th November, 2018) International Energy Forum (IEF) Secretary General Sun Xiansheng told Sputnik on Tuesday that the next session of the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other members of oil output freeze deal, slated for December, is the right time to determine new levels of oil production cuts.

"Yes, in December they will have a meeting of the group as a whole. They will have a more serious discussion. They will have a look [at the market] for a short time from now until the December meeting, less than one month, so they can observe the performance of the market and then make the decision. I think it is the right time," Sun said on the sidelines of the ADIPEC conference in Abu Dhabi.

The JMMC is comprised of six members: co-chairs Saudi Arabia and Russia, Kuwait, Oman, Venezuela and Algeria plus the United Arab Emirates, this year's president of the OPEC Conference.

At Sunday's meeting, the committee reached no recommendation to cut oil production. The next JMMC meeting will be held in Vienna on December 5.

"I think so. The purpose for them is to seek market balance, but sometimes it is difficult. [If the oil output cut is] within the reasonable range, it is OK," Sun said when asked if he supported the decrease in production.

OPEC and several non-OPEC oil producers, including Russia, reached a deal in Vienna in 2016, agreeing to cut oil output by a total of 1.8 million barrels per day in an effort to stabilize global oil prices. Non-OPEC states pledged to jointly reduce oil output by 558,000 barrels per day. The agreement, which came into effect in 2017, has been extended twice since then and is expected to remain in force until the end of 2018.