Opec+ ministers to next meet on 4 January

The Opec+ group is slated to meet on 4 January to discuss February production levels, according to three Opec+ delegates, as the coalition moves to monthly ministerial meetings to guide output policy in the short term.

Opec and Opec+ ministerial assemblies have typically been biannual fixtures, but have increased in frequency as the group targets flexibility in its response to market needs. A fourth delegate said that Opec has floated the possibility of holding its meeting earlier in the same day of the Opec+ meeting of 4 January, but it is unclear if this proposal has been approved.

The Opec+ coalition on 3 December agreed a 482,000 b/d production increase in January, with subsequent monthly production adjustments to be discussed at monthly ministerial meetings in the first quarter of 2021. This arrangement could be extended beyond March, one delegate flagged last week. Production rises or declines are capped at 500,000 b/d each month.

The Opec+ Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) holds separate monthly meetings discussing the individual compliance levels of countries participating in the output restraint deal. These assemblies have typically preceded Opec+ meetings.

By Ruxandra Iordache and Anastasia Krasinskaya