OPEC+ crude output hits 11-month low in June, as Russia, Iraq lead declines: Platts survey

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OPEC and its Russia-led allies moved closer to quota compliance in June, cutting crude output by 130,000 b/d to 40.87 million b/d, the monthly Platts OPEC+ survey from S&P Global Commodity Insights showed July 9.

OPEC production was up 10,000 b/d to 26.76 million b/d, while non-OPEC production fell 140,000 b/d to 14.11 million b/d.

Member countries with quotas produced 220,000 b/d above quota in June, down from 239,000 b/d in May.

The OPEC+ alliance has implemented major production cuts to support oil prices, which have begun to respond, with Dated Brent rising 14% since the start of June to $87.73/b on July 8 according to Platts assessments.

Two of the biggest overproducers in the group cut output in June but remained over target.

Russia led the drop in non-OPEC production, cutting output by 140,000 b/d to 9.1 million b/d in June -- the lowest level since December 2020, but above its quota of 8.98 million b/d.

Meanwhile, Iraq cut output by 60,000 b/d to 4.22 million b/d. Kazakhstan increased output by 50,000 b/d to 1.54 million b/d.

The three producers have pledged to submit plans to compensate for production at the start of 2024. Kazakhstan said July 8 it will submit its plan to the OPEC secretariat after secondary sources release output data for June. Secondary sources include the Platts survey.

An Iraqi official said the delegation was in discussions with the OPEC secretariat over its compensation plan. Russia has not commented on its plan.

They had all agreed to submit plans by the end of June. They were expected to compensate for overproduction in 2024 by September 2025.

The overproducers are part of a group that is implementing a combined 2.2 million b/d of voluntary cuts, currently in place until the end of the third quarter. The group then plans to gradually bring some of those barrels back to market from September if conditions warrant. A further 3.6 million b/d of group-wide cuts are in place until the end of 2025.

Nigerian production rose to the highest level in over three years at 1.5 million b/d, the survey found, on the back of strong exports and increased crude supply to the country's Dangote refinery.

That allowed Nigeria to hit its crude quota -- which was trimmed in January -- for the first time since 2020, suggesting Africa's biggest producer could regain some lost influence within the alliance.

The next meeting of the joint ministerial monitoring committee overseeing the agreement is scheduled for Aug. 1, followed by a full ministerial meeting Dec. 1.

The Platts survey measures wellhead production and is compiled using information from oil industry officials, traders and analysts, as well as by reviewing proprietary shipping, satellite and inventory data.