Oil Minister: We Support The Extension Of The Agreement To Reduce Oil Production

BAGHDAD, IRAQ (NINA) - Iraq's oil minister, Jabbar al-Luaibi said Iraq supports the extension of a global deal to cut oil production but has not indicated the preferred duration of the extension. "We will agree with all OPEC members, whatever the agreement and we will be with them, but certainly we are with the extension," Luaibi told reporters after arriving in Vienna on Tuesday evening. "There are three options we will discuss tomorrow," the oil minister said. "Six months, nine months or a year," adding that "the general principle is the cut should continue." Kuwait's Oil Minister Essam al-Marzouq said "no agreement had yet been reached on the possible extension of oil production cuts. "A joint OPEC committee and independent producers have recommended extending global oil supply cuts until the end of next year with an option to review the agreement in June," two informed sources said. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Russia and nine other non-OPEC producers cut oil production by 1.8 million bpd by the end of March 2018. OPEC will discuss the extension of the agreement during its meeting in Vienna on Thursday. "/ End