RIYADH: Saudi Oil Minister said that Saudi Arabia is currently producing 10 million barrels of crude oil per day and have no need to increase its output capacity beyond 12.5 million barrels per day.
At 10 million barrels a day, Saudi Arabia is producing the most crude oil since July, when oil prices began a historic collapse. The country averaged about 9.7 million barrels a day in the second half of 2014.
Saudi Arabia’s oil production levels are closely monitored because it is the biggest oil exporter in the world and arguably the strongest voice in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. It led a push in November to maintain production within OPEC to grab market share instead of propping up prices with cuts in output.
Saudi Arabia’s top oil official Ali Al-Naimi didn’t specify if the figure was a monthly average. He told reporters on the sidelines of a conference in Riyadh that he was optimistic about the outlook of the oil market.
Earlier Sunday, the oil minister told the conference that there was no conspiracy behind the OPEC decision to maintain its production ceiling. He said the group could have lost market share if it had cut its production.
“There is no conspiracy and we tried to correct all the things that have been said but nobody listens,” Mr. Naimi said. “We are not against anybody, we are with whoever wants to maintain market stability and the balance between supply and demand,” he said, adding that price is decided by the market.
