Opec considers postponing emergency meeting

Opec and its non-Opec allies are considering delaying an emergency meeting scheduled for 6 April as a dispute between heavyweights Saudi Arabia and Russia intensified over who is to blame for the recent collapse in oil prices.

Members have floated 9 April as a new date for the meeting, one Opec delegate told Argus. But the Opec secretariat has yet to be notified of any postponement. Opec's second-largest producer Iraq is still preparing for a 6 April meeting, an oil ministry official said.

An as-yet unidentified group of producing nations was scheduled to hold a video conference on 6 April after Saudi Arabia called on Opec, its non-Opec partners and other producers to meet urgently in response to the drastic fall in prices since the acrimonious collapse of the Opec+ production cut agreement in early March.

That breakdown of co-operation between the 23-country Opec+ coalition, coupled with the reduction in global oil demand as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, has seen oil prices fall by around one third in just a month.

Russian president Vladimir Putin said yesterday that the talks should consider a collective production cut of around 10mn b/d from first quarter output levels.

But a fresh overnight attack by Saudi Arabia on the Russian president and energy minister Alexander Novak for comments made about Riyadh's role in the oil price collapse now threatens to derail the renewed efforts for a deal.

It also remains unclear whether the US will actively join the talks. But as of now, there are few official signs — and potentially plenty of legal hurdles — of US participation in the cuts, despite several Opec+ delegates telling Argus that the US would likely need to contribute as part of any new agreement.

By Rowena Edwards, Nader Itayim, Ruxandra Iordache and Samira Kawar