Russian crude oil output dips slightly in May, in line with OPEC+ pact

London, (Quantum Commodity Intelligence) - Russian crude oil and condensate production in May reached 10.4 million bpd, according to government data, slightly down on the month, up 11% on the year, but down 7% on the same month in 2019, before the pandemic began.

The figure, equivalent to 44.2 million mt, means that Russian production has been on an upward trend for 12 straight months, albeit with slight month-on-month dips.

The slight fall comes amid Russia's voluntary pact to be part of the OPEC+ group of oil exporters, which collectively have decided to curb oil output to help shore up prices, but allowed Russia to increase production in the first few months of the year.

"Though daily production was nearly 100,000 barrels higher than agreed with OPEC (assuming the production of condensates remained unchanged at 940,000 bpd in May), it was nonetheless slightly down on the April level," German bank Commerzbank said in a report Wednesday.

"Because of the disciplined implementation of the production quotas and an insufficient response to the rising oil prices on the part of non-OPEC oil producers, confidence in the group and in its ability to influence the oil price has increased considerably," the bank said.