In an attempt to reclaim market share in the face of stable crude prices, Saudi Arabia, Russia, and six other important members of the OPEC+ alliance said on Sunday that they will boost output by 547,000 barrels per day.
The Voluntary Eight (V8), which consists of Saudi Arabia, Russia, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria, Oman, Iraq, and the United Arab Emirates, now produce between 41 and 42 million barrels per day, thus the increase is roughly 1.5%.
Given that the Brent reference oil is now trading at roughly $70 per barrel, analysts predicted that there would not likely be a significant influence on prices.
“The eight participating countries will implement a production adjustment of 547,000 barrels per day in September 2025 from August 2025 required production level,” said a statement released after a meeting where the hike was agreed.
According to an OPEC statement, the eight major producers, who began raising output in April, reaffirmed their dedication to market stability on the basis of “current healthy oil market fundamentals.”
Despite robust summer demand and a large geopolitical risk premium, particularly because of the confrontation between Iran and Israel, oil prices have held up better than analysts had predicted.
“OPEC+ has passed the first test — unwinding 2.2 million barrels per day (since April) without crashing prices or compromising unity,” said Jorge Leon, analyst at Rystad Energy.
“But the next task will be even harder: deciding if and when to unwind the remaining 1.66 million barrels, all while navigating geopolitical tension and preserving cohesion,” said Leon.
