OPEC oil supplies rise in October; Iraq cuts production but exceeds quota
Shafaq News/ Oil supplies from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) climbed by about 370,000 barrels per day (bpd) in October, reaching 29.9 million bpd, according to a Bloomberg survey. This rise was primarily driven by Libya’s resumption of oil field and refinery operations last month.
Meanwhile, Iraq reduced its oil production by around 90,000 bpd, bringing output to 4.13 million bpd as part of its commitment to OPEC’s supply-cutting agreement. However, Iraq's production still exceeded its designated quota of 4 million bpd.
On Friday, Iraq announced reducing its crude oil production in compliance with the directives of OPEC and its allied countries.
The Iraqi Ministry of Oil announced in a statement that “aligned with the Republic of Iraq’s dedication to the decisions made by OPEC and its allied nations under the Declaration of Cooperation (DoC) on voluntary oil production adjustments, we confirm that Iraq has lowered its oil production and reduced exports to 3.3 million barrels per day, alongside limiting domestic consumption.”
Regarding the duration of this reduction, the ministry declared that it persists in the next months “to ensure production stays within the agreed limits and to compensate for additional volumes produced in recent months.”
“This initiative seeks to support balance and stability in the global crude oil market,” the ministry added.
Iraq is the second-largest crude oil producer in OPEC after Saudi Arabia and the sixth-largest total petroleum liquids producer in the world. It holds the world’s fifth-largest proved crude oil reserves, at 145 billion barrels, representing 17% of proved reserves in the Middle East and 8% of global reserves.
