MOSCOW, February 13. /TASS/. OPEC countries (excluding Iran, Libya and Venezuela) participating in the OPEC+ agreement reduced oil production by 226,000 barrels per day in January 2024 to 21.368 mln barrels per day mainly due to a decrease in production in Algeria, Iraq and Kuwait, the cartel said in its February report.
New OPEC+ output targets have been in effect since 2024. Considering all changes, including the revision of quotas for Congo and Nigeria, as well as Angola’s withdrawal from OPEC, the adjusted quota for nine OPEC countries participating in the OPEC+ deal totals 23.835 mln barrels per day. In January, the volume of those countries’ real output equaled 21.368 mln barrels per day, which is 2.467 mln barrels per day lower than the level stipulated by the OPEC+ agreement.
However, the parameters of the OPEC+ deal do not consider voluntary output cuts, which a number of OPEC+ nations stick to, including some OPEC countries as well. Those cuts total 1.66 mln barrels per day. Moreover, Saudi Arabia additionally reduces production by another 1 mln barrels per day from last July to the end of the first quarter of 2024, while Iraq, the UAE, Kuwait and Algeria voluntarily cut output by a total of 572,000 barrels per day in Q1.
Nine out of 12 OPEC members participate in the OPEC+ agreement on crude output reduction as Iran, Libya and Venezuela have been allowed not to cut production. In January, oil production went up by 14,000 barrels per day to 796,000 barrels per day in Venezuela, down by 162,000 barrels per day to 1.015 mln barrels per day in Libya, and down by 5,000 barrels per day to 3.163 mln barrels per day in Iran.
Overall, all 12 OPEC states reduced oil production by 350,000 barrels per day to 26.342 mln barrels per day in January. The largest cuts were made by Libya (-162,000 barrels per day), while among countries participating in the OPEC+ agreement the highest cuts were made by Algeria (-46,000 barrels per day), Iraq (-98,000 barrels per day), and Kuwait (-109,000 barrels per day).