OPEC oil production rose in June for the second straight month, a Reuters poll showed on Tuesday, as higher supplies from Nigeria and Iran offset the impact of voluntary supply cuts by other members and the broader OPEC+ alliance.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries pumped 26.70 million barrels per day (bpd) last month, up 70,000 bpd from May, according to the survey based on shipping data and information from industry sources.
The increase comes as OPEC+, which includes OPEC and allies such as Russia, decided last month to extend most of its production cuts through the end of 2025 to support the market in the face of weak demand growth, high interest rates and rising U.S. output.
Nigeria increased output by 50,000 bpd, and Iran and Algeria saw more modest increases following the completion of oilfield maintenance. The largest decline, of 50,000 bpd, was recorded in Iraq, although the country still exceeds its OPEC+ target.
OPEC pumped about 280,000 bpd more than the implied target for the nine members covered by supply-cutting agreements, with Iraq still accounting for most of the surplus, the survey showed.
Among those not required to cut output, Iran’s output reached 3.2 million bpd. That’s the rate it expects to be in November 2023, the highest since 2018, according to Reuters surveys.
Iran sells crude oil to 17 countries, Oil Minister Javad Owji was quoted as saying by the semi-official Mehr News Agency on Tuesday, indicating that some states may not honor the remaining U.S. sanctions.
The Reuters survey aims to track supply to the market and draws on shipping data from external sources, flow data from LSEG, information from companies that track flows – such as Petro-Logistics and Kpler – and information from sources within oil companies, OPEC and consultants. (Additional reporting by Ahmad Ghaddar; writing by Jason Neely and David Goodman)
