Lack of Agreements on Oil Market Balance Not to Be Crucial for Russia

Lack of a deal on oil market stabilization does not have a critical importance for Moscow, the Russian energy minister said.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Lack of Algerian agreements on the oil market stabilization would not be critical for Russia, country's Energy Minister Alexander Novak said Sunday.

"For us, theoretically, it would not be crucial but we think that it is possible to speed up the market balancing process. It is beneficial for everybody," Novak told journalists.

The OPEC member states are expected to renew talks on a possible oil output freeze with non-member states at the September 26-28 International Energy Forum (IEF) in Algiers.

In April, major oil-producing states failed to reach an output-freezing agreement in Doha, Qatar. Saudi Arabia, which had previously said that it would freeze output only if Iran followed suit, cited Tehran’s absence from the talks as a reason for not supporting an output freeze. The output freeze idea was floated as a means to counter the ongoing global oil oversupply which has caused prices to plummet from over $100 per barrel to less than $50 per barrel.

Russia Has No Proposals From Oil Producing States on Decline in Production

Russia has not received any proposals from oil exporting countries to decrease the oil production in order to balance the market, the Russian energy minister said.

"Nobody has put forward such proposals to us. These are, probably, individual statements. We should gather all together and discuss it."

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) reportedly wants to hold an informal meeting with non-OPEC oil producers, such as Russia, on how to stabilize the market.