Azerbaijan is likely to support further oil output cuts by OPEC and its allies, the country’s energy minister said.
A move described as necessary to balance demand fears after a coronavirus outbreak in China.
Azerbaijan is not an OPEC member but is part of the OPEC+ group informally established in 2016.
A technical panel that advises OPEC+ proposed this week a provisional cut of around 600,000 barrels per day (bpd).
“Azerbaijan is likely to support this,” Parviz Shahbazov told Reuters in an interview.
Azerbaijan is not a big contributor to the overall cuts by OPEC+, but its position may shed light on Russia’s thinking as non-OPEC members of the group usually take a unanimous decision.
Meanwhile, Moscow is yet to give its nod to the further cuts.
Producers in the OPEC+ group are scheduled to meet in Vienna on March 5-6, although the meeting could be brought forward depending on how the coronavirus outbreak affects oil prices going forward.
