Russia calls for new enlarged OPEC deal to tackle oil demand collapse – Reuters

Kirill Dmitriev, Head of the of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), sovereign wealth fund, called for a new OPEC alliance (OPEC+) deal to stabilize the oil market and cushion the demand impact of the coronavirus outbreak, in a telephonic interview with Reuters on Friday.

Its worth noting that Dmitriev and the Energy Minister Alexander Novak were Russia’s top negotiators in the production cut deal with OPEC. 

Key quotes

“Joint actions by countries are needed to restore the(global) economy... They (joint actions) are also possible in OPEC+ deal’s framework.”

“We are in contact with Saudi Arabia and a number of other countries. Based on these contacts we see that if the number of OPEC+ members will increase and other countries will join there is a possibility of a joint agreement to balance oil markets.”

“A global economic crisis was inevitable as global debt to the world’s gross domestic product had risen to 323% as of now from 230% at a time of the previous economic crisis of 2008. The virus just triggered it.”

“Efforts to restore relations between Russia and the United States are now as important as ever, we will take all the efforts our side and hope the United States will also understand that this is necessary.”

• Russian Deputy OilMin: OPEC+ members remain in contact