OPEC Adamant in Maintaining Production Quota

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By Jacob Maslow

Oil Pipeline in Qatar
Oil Pipeline in Qatar

On Sunday, Dec. 14, United Arab Emirates’s energy minister Suhail Al-Mazrouei stated at a conference that OPEC will maintain its current production even if oil falls to $40 per barrel. In addition, the organization will wait at least another three months before planning an emergency meeting, he said.

OPEC remains strong, and won’t change the decision made on Nov. 27 to keep its collective output target of 30 million barrels a day, said Suhail Al-Mazrouei, Bloomberg reported. Given the recent price slide, Venezuela supports a new meeting for OPEC, although the South American country hasn’t requested one officially, a Venezuelan foreign ministry official said on Dec. 12. Currently, the next OPEC meeting is scheduled for June 5, 2015.

“We are not going to change our minds because the prices went to $60 or to $40,” Mazrouei said yesterday at a Dubai conference, according to the news source. “We’re not targeting a price; the market will stabilize itself.” He also said that the recent conditions don’t justify an emergency OPEC meeting. “We need to wait for at least a quarter to consider an urgent session.” he said.

In November, OPEC generated around 30.65 million barrels per day, surpassing their initial target for the sixth month in a row. Kuwait, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia, increased their discounts this month on shipments to Asia, which fed speculation they are competing for market share as shale production surges in the U.S. OPEC is known to supply around 40 percent of the world’s oil. On Dec. 12, London Brent crude slumped 2.9 percent to $61.85, the lowest closing price since July 2009.

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