OMAN TO HOST OPEC'S JOINT MINISTERIAL MONITORING COMMITTEE MEETING ON JAN 21

Oman will host the 7th meeting of the joint ministerial monitoring committee (JMMC) in collaboration with the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) at Grand Hyatt Muscat on January 21.

“It is for the first time that an OPEC event is taking place in Oman and the proposed meeting is being supported by Oman Oil Company,” Ali al Riyami, director general - marketing at the Ministry of Oil and Gas, told reporters at a press conference on Sunday.

The JMMC includes member states of OPEC and non-OPEC members such as Oman and Russia. The committee's meeting usually takes place once in every two months to monitor how effectively member countries are complying with agreed production cuts. Oman has been an active participant in the JMMC, which was constituted by OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers to oversee the compliance of agreed cuts in their outputs.

Riyami said, “This meeting is an important one as it will be the first JMMC of 2018, paving the way for further cooperation between OPEC members and participating non-OPEC nations into 2018. All the member countries of JMMC has confirmed their participation in the upcoming meeting.”

In November 2017, OPEC and non-OPEC oil producing countries agreed to extend production cuts to the end of 2018 to support oil prices. The output reduction agreement helped Brent crude prices to rise more than 50 per cent since mid 2017 and hit US$70 per barrel last week for the first time since December 2014. Oman, which is not an OPEC member, has been a staunch supporter of production cuts.

The sultanate had agreed to cut its oil output by around 45,000 barrels per day to comply with an accord signed between OPEC and non-OPEC producers. Before slashing its production as part of the agreement, Oman was producing nearly a million barrels per day. Riyami said the JMMC members are likely to discuss a range of topics from geopolitical situations to consumption and supply situation in different parts of the world, and also about the probable impact of increase in shale oil production in the US.

He also informed that on January 20, a day before the JMMC, a meeting of senior officials would take place to discuss technical details. Later after the JMMC meeting, members will review reports and would made recommendations for their respective countries. On level of compliance to the production cuts agreement, Riyami said, “So far, we are very satisfied with the conformity shown by the member countries.”