Biden's side advocates an increase in production, while OPEC+ does not intend to change its roadmap

OPEC+ to maintain production plan despite US pressure

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OPEC+ (the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies) has turned a deaf ear to US demands to increase the level of production of barrels per day. The organisation's plan is to maintain this volume of production until the end of 2022, ensuring that there will be no supply problems, despite the energy crisis the world is going through. The Russian deputy minister, Alexander Novak, supports this decision, assuring that the intention is to increase crude oil production by the end of next year, as previously planned. 

Washington does not quite believe the words of OPEC+ members and considers that supplies are being deliberately withheld. The White House is calling for the current 400,000 barrels of production to be increased to at least 600,000 barrels, and is even aiming for 800,000 barrels. Saudi energy minister Abdulaziz bin Salman defends the organisation's management as a responsible oil producer and regulator whose work is producing good results. He maintains that "OPEC+ will ensure sufficient supply to the market in a timely manner", responding to US accusations.

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The Biden administration does not see good intentions in the refusal to increase production levels. The growth in demand and, consequently, in the price of other energy sources, is truly worrying, especially when China reports the first blackouts, which are expected to reach the West in the coming months. Inflation threatens the economic aspirations of the White House, which continues to exert pressure to increase the number of barrels of crude oil per day, something that, for the moment, does not seem close to happening. This request has been joined by Japan and India, which, like the United States, fear a possible supply shortage.

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The US media Bloomberg warns of the risks that OPEC's decision not to increase production could bring with it. They point out that the economic agenda could be seriously affected by supply problems. However, the position of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries does not seem to be changing as they continue to call for calm and assure that there is no risk of an oil supply shutdown in the near future. Kuwait and Iraq remain aligned with this position and are still inclined to maintain plans to increase production by the end of next year. 

Investment group Goldman Sachs supports the OPEC+ position and is optimistic about the coming winter months: "Demand will remain close to pre-Covid levels this winter, even with average winter temperatures". The position of some companies is to switch from natural gas to crude oil as a solution to rising energy prices, which, in any case, would not be very favourable to the goal of lower gasoline prices in Europe, Asia or the United States.

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