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Minister: Azerbaijan not considering joining OPEC, remains committed to output cut deal

Azerbaijan is not considering joining OPEC but remains committed to the OPEC coalition output cut deal.

Minister: Azerbaijan not considering joining OPEC, remains committed to output cut deal


Baku, April 24 - Neftegaz.RU. According to Platts report, Azerbaijan is not considering joining OPEC but remains committed to the OPEC coalition output cut deal, said energy minister Parviz Shahbazov.

«We are pleased with the cooperation because all the goals that were set for this format have been achieved. You can see the results. Thus, we intend to continue this successful cooperation within the OPEC plus format,» Shahbazov said.

At the same time, Azerbaijan is not considering joining OPEC despite a recent suggestion by OPEC general secretary Mohammad Barkindo that it do so, he said. Barkindo visited Azerbaijan in March. «This question is not on the agenda. We are content with today's close and fruitful cooperation,» Shahbazov told reporters.

Azerbaijan it party to the OPEC coalition agreement to reduce production by 1.8 million b/d, effective from January 2017 as part of Russian-led group of 10 non-OPEC oil producing countries. Azerbaijan has shown a high compliance with its commitment to reduce output by 35,000 b/d in line with a natural decline from the country's oil fields.

In the 1st quarter of the year, the country increased production by around 2.5% on the year to around 786,000 b/d due to increased drilling by state-owned SOCAR. Output, however, is still below Azerbaijan's quota under the deal of 834,000 b/d.

Despite the Q1 results, the country's output is not expected to grow further through the year on the continuing natural decline, Vagif Aliyev, chief of SOCAR's investment division, said on the sidelines of an oil event in Baku.

Azerbaijan's authorities estimated in October the country's crude and condensate production would fall to 37.535 million mt, or 753,785 b/d on average in 2018, down nearly 3% on the year, according to local media.


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