MEXICO CITY – Mexico is not in a position to make additional oil output cuts beyond those agreed at the April meeting of the OPEC+ group of oil-producing countries, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Friday.
Source: Reuters
OPEC+ agreed in April to cut supply by 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd) during May and June to prop up prices, which fell sharply after the coronavirus outbreak hit. Cuts have been due to taper to 7.7 million bpd from July to December.
As part of the deal, Mexico agreed to make cuts of 100,000 bpd in May and June, resisting pressure from other oil producers to lower output by 400,000 bpd. Mexico said at the time the United States had agreed to make up most of the difference.
Lopez Obrador told a regular news conference Mexico has made good on the oil cuts agreed at the April meeting, and called on other countries that have not yet made promised cuts to do so.
“Members of OPEC have already been informed of our position. We are working to reduce oil production by 100,000 barrels. We are already complying,” the president said.
“We aren’t able to adjust our production more, we have already closed oil wells to make good out the commitment we made,” he added.
Lopez Obrador has pledged to revive the fortunes of heavily-indebted state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) and ramp up crude production. In the process, he has walked back parts of a reform that opened up the industry to private capital.
OPEC and its allies led by Russia will meet on Saturday to discuss extending record oil cuts, and to push laggards such as Iraq and Nigeria to comply with existing curbs.
Mexican Energy Minister Rocio Nahle will be setting out Mexico’s position at the talks by telephone, Lopez Obrador said.
