FILE - An oil tanker is moored at the Sheskharis complex, part of Chernomortransneft JSC, a subsidiary of Transneft PJSC, the largest facilities for oil and petroleum products in southern Russia, in Novorossiysk, Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022. Russia's still making plenty of money from oil sales despite a price cap imposed by the Group of Seven major democracies. Researchers at Helsinki's Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said in report Wednesday Jan. 11, 2023 that the cap is too lenient at $60 per barrel. (AP Photo, File)
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) – Russia will cut oil production by 500,000 barrels per day next month in response to the West capping the price of its crude over the war in Ukraine, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said Friday, according to multiple Russian news media reports.
“As of today, we fully sell all our crude output, but as we stated before, we will not sell oil to those who directly or indirectly adhere to the “˜price ceiling,'” Novak said, in remarks carried on the Russian TASS news agency.
“In connection with that, Russia will voluntarily cut production by 500,000 barrels a day. It will help restore market-style relations,” he said.
International benchmark Brent crude rose 2.5% Friday, to $86.67 per barrel.
The Group of Seven major democracies have imposed a $60-per-barrel price cap on Russian oil shipped to non-Western countries. The goal is to keep oil flowing to global markets to prevent price spikes seen last year while limiting Russia’s financial gains that can be used to pay for the war against Ukraine.
The cap is enforced by barring Western companies that largely control shipping and insurance services from moving oil priced above the limit.
Russia has said it will not sell oil to countries observing the cap, a moot point because Russian oil has been trading below the price ceiling recently. However, the cap, along with an European Union embargo on Russian oil and lower demand for crude globally amid a slowing global economy, has meant that customers have been able to push for substantial discounts on Russian oil.
