The OPEC/non-OPEC production cut agreement has significantly benefited Russia’s budget and companies, as it put a floor under oil prices, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday. Oil prices could have dropped to US$25 a barrel if OPEC and its Russia-led non-OPEC allies hadn’t started to curtail production in 2017, Novak said at the Russian Investment Forum in Sochi today. Without the OPEC deal, oversupply would have been significant, inventories today would have been much higher than the five-year average, and the pressure on prices would have been significant, the Russian minister said. Novak’s remarks come days after reports emerged that Igor Sechin, the chief executive of Russia’s largest oil producer Rosneft, had written a letter to Vladimir Putin, arguing that Russia should quit the OPEC+ deal, which, according to Sechin, threatens Russia’s market share while it benefits the United States. Novak, while not commenting on those reports, […]