Putin backs OPEC production cuts but warns of losing oil-market share to the US

BUSINESS INSIDER:  Vladimir Putin expressed his support for OPEC and its allies' oil production cuts, but fretted about possibly jeopardizing the oil cartel's market share versus non-member oil stats like the US.

Russia's leader lauded the positive impact of OPEC's cuts on the country's energy revenue while acknowledging the potential for a dip in its share of the crude market during his meeting with winners of a governmental competition on Tuesday, Bloomberg reported.

"OPEC+ does help us hold up the oil price and ensure budget revenue," Putin said on Rossiya 24 state TV. "Yet the output is dropping while it grows in other countries such as the US, and we may lose markets."

He underscored his unwavering support for Russia's collaboration with OPEC, clarifying that his mention of market share risk was merely "an alternative viewpoint."

Russia's oil and gas industry, the Kremlin's main funding source, has faced mounting pressure due to Putin ramping up military expenses to fund the war in Ukraine, which has also sparked waves of sanctions from the Western countries.

Since the war began in 2022, the West and its allies have unleashed a barrage of sanctions, with G7 nations imposing price caps on Moscow's petroleum to curb its oil revenues that fund the war.

Crude prices jumped at the start of 2024, buoyed by OPEC's planned 2.2 million barrel daily production cut for the first quarter.

Russia is poised to further slash oil production and exports in April, May, and June, building on an earlier 500,000 barrel per day reduction pledged by Moscow to be upheld throughout 2024.

Meanwhile, the US crude production hit historic highs for six straight years, with production peaking last year at 12.9 million barrels per day, surpassing the 2019 global record of 12.3 million barrels per day including condensate, the US Energy Information Administration wrote on Monday.