MOSCOW (Reuters) – An increase in Russian oil production towards a record high in March will not be an obstacle to an expected agreement on a production freeze, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Saturday, local news agencies reported.
Novak said that it was important that Russia’s average production over a prolonged period would not exceed its output level in January, as previously agreed.
Russia’s oil production rose 0.3 percent to 10.91 million barrels per day in March, its highest level in nearly 30 years, raising questions over Moscow’s commitment to freeze output ahead of the producers’ meeting in Doha later in April.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin. Editing by Jane Merriman)
