As the OPEC+ deal has expired, Russia and Saudi Arabia remain at odds, though the United States offered encouraging words that production cuts might be negotiated
The Russian-Saudi feud over oil production has destabilized the market even as the industry faces anemic demand and the potential ...
... nations are hoping to agree on individual production quotas and a freeze date.
In the foreseeable future, global crude output is set to grow not because of Russian or Saudi production but rather thanks to Iraq, Iran and possibly also Libya and Nigeria.
Russia's cooperation with Saudi Arabia bypassing OPEC appears ineffective. The two countries' combined crude output amounts to just 22% of global production
[1]
; cutting back production would not achieve much, while losing them their market share. Moreover, in the foreseeable future, global crude ...
... co-owner of one of Russia's largest oil companies, Lukoil, supported the position that capping oil production was necessary. He stated: «My personal opinion is that this needs to be done. Back in 1998, I was one of the initiators of negotiations with OPEC. At the time, the common position shared by Russia, Norway, Mexico and Saudi Arabia caused prices to turn around and we achieved an enduring upward trend». He also
emphasized
: «What is the rationale behind increasing output on the market at a time, when even small corrections in supply will lead to a price ...
.... The fall in prices is fraught with unexpected consequences.
Conspiracy, the laws of the market, and the oil weapon
When everything is so bad, conspiracy theories are the simplest explanation. What they boil down to is the idea that the USA and its OPEC ally Saudi Arabia have taken a political decision to bring about a collapse in prices in order to weaken Russia for acting, as they see it, too independently in the international arena, especially in Syria and Ukraine.
diepresse.com
Sami Faraj, President of the Kuwait Centre for
Strategic Studies: “There is no conspiracy, just
the laws of the market....
... could it as it holds relatively minor amount of global oil reserves – which are depleting quickly.
Russia may have emerged from the ashes of USSR, but it was far from a Phoenix as during 4-5 stages it once again had little sway – obviously Russia makes the most oil in the world, occasionally swapping places with Saudi Arabia for the top branch, but the Saudis wield OPEC which allows them to work more or less as a unit. In a way the situation has worsened as during the 1-3 stages oil markets were undeveloped, so being a price-taker still gave time to catch up, now the mature market has less scope for revolutionary ...