Survey: OPEC production fell 710,000 barrels a day in November after cutting commitments

A Reuters poll showed on Wednesday that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) oil output fell in November, led by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf members, after the OPEC+ alliance is committed to significant production cuts to support the market in a context of deteriorating economic outlook.

The survey found that OPEC produced 29.01 million barrels a day this month, in down 710,000 barrels per day from October. Its production in September was the highest since 2020.

OPEC and its allies, known as OPEC+, ramped up production for most of 2022 as demand recovered. But in November, as oil prices weakened on fears of a recession, the group made its biggest cut since the early days of the ‘Covid-19’ pandemic in 2020.

In its decision for the month of November, OPEC+ called for a production cut of two million barrels per day, of which about 1.27 million are expected to come from the ten member countries of OPEC.

Production was below target volume in how many producers, in particularly Angola and Nigeria, lacked the capacity to pump more oil due to underinvestment and, in Nigeria’s case, theft of crude oil.

The survey found that the 10-member’s production fell by 720,000 bpd month-over-month, leaving actual production at 800,000 bpd below the group’s November target. The shortage in October was 1.36 million barrels per day.

The survey found that as production fell short of target, OPEC exceeded its promised cuts by 163% in November.

OPEC+ will hold a meeting online next Sunday to review the production policy and no changes are expected to its current production policy.

The investigation concluded that Saudi Arabia reduced its production in November by 500,000 barrels per day compared to October, almost completely fulfilling its promised reduction. It was followed by the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait in terms of major reduction.

The survey showed Algeria cut about half of the pledged amount, while Iraq, OPEC’s second largest producer, which is asking for an increase in its quota, just cut production in November.

The survey found that Angola and Nigeria ramped up production in November, but both pumped well below their quota. Nigeria posted the largest increase from OPEC, supported by higher Forcados crude exports.

There has been a small change in production in Libya, Iran and Venezuela, all of which are exempt from OPEC production cuts.

The Reuters investigation relies on shipping data provided by outside sources, Refinitiv Eikon data on oil flows, information from tanker tracking companies such as Petro-Logistics, and information provided by oil company, OPEC and consultant sources.