OPEC production drops by 170,000bpd in June

Lagos - Oil production by the 14-member nations in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, dropped by 170,000 barrels per day, bpd, last month, the organisation's lowest output since 2014.

Statistics from a Reuter’s survey showed that the group’s production sank to a five-year low despite a rise in Saudi supply.

Although Saudi Arabia is raising output following pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump to bring down prices, the country is still voluntarily pumping less than the OPEC-led cut deal allows it to.

Saudi Arabia increased supply by 100,000 bpd to 9.8 million bpd

from May’s revised figure, the survey found. This is still below its OPEC quota of 10.311 bpd.

OPEC and its partners at meetings last week renewed the Declaration of Cooperation, DoC, by which they cut production from December 2017 level by 1.2 million bpd with from January last year. Iran, Libya and Venezuela were exempted from the OPEC cut while non-OPEC cut 400, 000bpd. The cut deal has been extended until March 2020.

Iran’s crude exports have declined to less than 400,000 bpd from more than 2.5 million bpd in April 2018.

In Venezuela, supply fell slightly in June due to the impact of U.S. sanction s on state o i l company PDVSA and a long-term decline in production, according to the survey.

Despite lower supplies, oil prices have fallen from a sixmonth high above $75 a barrel in April to below $63 last Friday.

In June, OPEC achieved 156% cuts, the survey found, more than in May, due to lower production in Iraq, Kuwait and Angola. All three exempt producers also pumped less oil.