Still no OPEC+ deal, with Russia resisting deeper oil production cuts: delegates

Vienna/Moscow — More than three hours of intense OPEC+ negotiations so far have yet to yield a deal on deeper production cuts, with Russia still holding out, according to delegates.

"Russia refuses to cut," one told S&P Global Platts. "Unfortunately, everything is the same."

OPEC late Thursday revealed a plan to slash its production quota by a further 1 million b/d for the rest of the year, contingent on Russia and nine other non-OPEC allies agreeing to shrink theirs by 500,000 b/d .

But Russia is only on board with extending current quotas, the Prime news agency reported Friday, citing a source in the Russian delegation

"We agree on an extension, but there is no understanding on volumes yet," the source said.

Ministers were currently holding a closed meeting to try and salvage a deal, another delegate said.

Oil prices have dropped sharply Friday on the Russian resistance to cuts. Front-month ICE Brent futures were trading at $47.96/b at 1203 GMT, down 4% from the previous close.

Russia's stance has dismayed many OPEC members, particularly Saudi Arabia, which had been pushing for decisive action to instill market confidence in the alliance's efforts to confront the demand destruction caused by the coronavirus outbreak.