Saudi Arabia extends voluntary oil output cuts through August

Saudi Arabia will extend its voluntary cuts of 1 million barrels per day (bpd) for another month to include August, the official Saudi news agency SPA reported on Monday.

SPA, citing a source in the Energy Ministry, confirmed the production decision for August to be approximately 9 million bpd.

The cuts are in addition to the voluntary cuts previously announced by Saudi Arabia in April 2023, according to the news agency.

On June 4, the OPEC+ group agreed during the 35th ministerial meeting to keep the current output cuts until the end of the year, with additional voluntary production cuts from OPEC’s swing producer, Saudi Arabia, of around 1 million bpd in July. Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman had said the output cuts might be extended from July onward.

Meanwhile, Russia’s state-run news agency TASS disclosed Russia’s decision to voluntarily cut oil exports by 500,000 bpd in August.

‘As part of efforts to ensure the oil market remains balanced, Russia will voluntarily reduce its oil supply in the month of August by 500,000 bpd by cutting its exports by that quantity to global markets,’ Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told reporters on Monday.

According to TASS, the new decision affects exports rather than production.

• Saudi news agency SPA