On Wednesday, Russian oil industry official Igor Sechin signposted his opposition to the prospect of linking with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in a bid to reverse the crude oil price defeat through coordinated cuts in oil production.
The close ally of Russia’s president Vladimir Putin, and head of the country’s state-governed oil company Rosneft, told attendees at London’s International Petroleum Week that the globe’s biggest producers would not give ground as they battle to retain customers.
When The Financial Times asked Sechin if he would consider joining forces with OPEC in a bid to shore up oil prices, he said:
“Who are we supposed to be talking to about cuts? …Will Saudi Arabia or Iran cut production?”
These were the first comments made by Sechin since some of Rosneft’s Russian rivals gave indication that they would consider working with OPEC to cut crude oil production last month, when the price of Brent crude fell below $30.
His latest statement indicates that his long-standing opposition to cuts in oil output has not been swayed by what is the lowest price for crude oil in a decade, and the shrinking of Russia’s economy.
Although Sechin did concede that a 1m barrels a day cut in oil output would help with the recovery of oil prices, there was no sign that he believed Moscow should do so.
The current glut in oil supply has proved challenging for a number of big players in the industry, including Royal Dutch Shell, which produces Shell Tellus S2 M 46, and BP.
