MOSCOW, March 21. /TASS/. Russia has decided to extend its decision on voluntary oil production cuts by 500,000 barrels per day through June 2023, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told reporters.
"In accordance with the current market situation, the decision to voluntarily reduce production in the amount of 500,000 barrels per day will be valid through June 2023," he said.
Novak added that Russia is close to reaching the target level of reducing oil production by 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) and will reach it in the coming days. "Russia maintains its position of total rejection of illegal restrictive measures and has voluntarily announced 500,000 barrel per day production cuts since March. Russia is currently on the verge of meeting the target level of reduction - it will reach it in the coming days," he said.
Novak said earlier that Russia has initially made a decision on voluntary reduction of crude production by 500,000 barrels per day for March. "We will see how the market situation will unfold, and depending on this, decisions will be taken on the market," he said, adding that "the present decision has only been made for March."
Novak's representative explained that the reduction would affect only oil output, excluding gas condensate. The production quota will be distributed evenly among oil companies depending on their level of production.
Meanwhile, a TASS source in the industry specified that the reduction in production would be calculated from the real volume of production, and not from Russia’s production quota under the OPEC+ deal. According to the deal, from November 2022, Russia is to produce 10.478 mln barrels per day. In January 2023, as Novak said earlier, Russia produced approximately 9.8-9.9 mln barrels per day.