Opec quota compliance falls to 62 percent

OPEC completed only 62 percent of its promised oil production cut in September, down from 66% in August, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait had the highest compliance rates in September, completing 99, 98 and 96% of their reductions, respectively, the Paris-based IEA estimated in a report yesterday. Angola hasn’t cut any and Iran made only 5% of its allotted reduction, the data showed.

OPEC countries committed to reducing supply by 4.2mn bpd in a series of meetings late last year. Commitment to those cutbacks helped raise oil prices from lows near $30 in December and January, though efforts from some nations have subsequently wavered as prices rallied to average almost $70 over the past three months.

Supplies from the 11 OPEC nations subject to quotas, from which Iraq is exempt, rose by 170,000 bpd in September to 26.42mn bpd, according to the IEA. That is about 1.58mn bpd more than the 24.845mn bpd target. Other OPEC nations with poor adherence to quotas are Nigeria, which made 34% of its reduction in September, and Venezuela with 36%, according to the IEA, an energy policy adviser to 27 developed consuming countries.

The next OPEC meeting will be held on December 22 in Angola, which holds the rotating presidency of OPEC this year.

Tags:  OPEC