Saudi Arabia in no hurry to end its voluntary oil production cut: Prince Abdulaziz

Saudi Arabia’s energy minister said on Thursday the kingdom was extending its voluntary 1 million barrel per day (bpd) oil production cut and would in coming months choose when to gradually phase out this reduction.

“We are not in a hurry to bring it forward ... We are cautious,” Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman told a news conference after a meeting of OPEC+ ministers, adding that Saudi Arabia would decide when to end its voluntary cut “at our time, at our convenience.”

Earlier , Prince Abdulaziz said that the situation in the oil market had improved but the outlook for a recovery in demand remained uncertain.

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Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman was speaking at the opening of a meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and its allies, a group known as OPEC+, to determine whether to lift crude production or keep it steady.

But both Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, lynchpins in the OPEC+ group, called for caution on Thursday.

“The uncertainty surrounding the pace of recovery has not receded,” the Saudi minister said. “At the risk of sounding like a stuck record, I would once again urge caution and vigilance.”

Russia’s Novak echoed those comments saying the oil market had not fully recovery and new coronavirus infections were still creating uncertainty.

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