TheCable

Nigeria joined the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) to rebuff pressures from the United States government to ramp up the global oil supply.

On Thursday, OPEC+ decided to stick to plans to increase the global oil supply by 400,000 barrels per day by December.

Speaking at the 21st OPEC and non-OPEC ministerial meeting, Timipre Sylva, minister of state for petroleum resources, said the OPEC+ decision is a step in the right direction for the global oil market.

“At this point, as a responsible organisation, we think the 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) that we have agreed to add to the market every month is adequate, and of course, you have the opportunity of sitting with us on a monthly basis to watch the market,” Sylva said.

“We think that as a responsible organisation, the decision we have taken today is the best for the moment.”

Last week, Joe Biden-led US government blamed the jump in oil prices on the cautious oil output by OPEC.

“Our view is that the global recovery should not be imperilled by a mismatch between supply and demand,” according to a statement from the national security council.

“OPEC+ seems unwilling to use the capacity and power it has now at this critical moment of global recovery for countries around the world.”

However, Timipre explained that OPEC focused on rebalancing supply and demand in the global oil market and not increasing oil and gas prices.

“If you compare the rise of gas prices to the rise of prices in oil, you will find out that the trajectory for oil is not where we would have expected it to be if it followed the same trajectory as gas,” he added.

“It is not time for us to react. As a responsible organisation, we thought it is just time to watch the market. The idea behind us meeting monthly is for us to gauge the market monthly as we go along.”

Saudi Arabia also dismissed calls for friendlier oil supply from OPEC+ with Kuwait and Iraq sharing a similar opinion.

Alexander Novak, Russia’s deputy prime minister, said global oil demand is still under pressure from the Delta COVID variant.