UAE Reportedly Denies Reaching Agreement With OPEC+ on Production Cuts, Says Talks Ongoing

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Emirati Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure has refuted reports that the UAE and OPEC+ reached an agreement on oil production cuts, Emirati media reported on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, Bloomberg reported, citing sources, that the parties had reached a compromise on an oil output cut deal, while the UAE will increase its base level production to 3.65 million barrels per day. In addition, the OPEC+ countries reportedly agreed to extend the deal until late 2022.

According to the Emirates News Agency, deliberations between the energy ministry and OPEC+ are ongoing, however, the sides have not yet reached a deal.

The OPEC+ production cut deal was reached in April 2020 by 23 countries, including 10 OPEC countries, amid the sharp fall in oil demand caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. In early July, the parties failed to extend the agreement and agree on increasing daily oil production quotas by 2 million barrels by late 2021 due to Emirati counterproposals. The UAE insisted on raising its base level to 3.8 million per day, instead of the current 3.168 million, and offered to postpone the discussion of the deal’s extension.