Russia may cut oil output in response to price caps, says deputy PM
A general view shows the State Historical Museum and the Kremlin wall as the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Moscow, Russia May 6, 2020. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina
Russia may cut oil output by 5%-7% in early 2023 as it responds to price caps on its crude and oil products by halting sales to the countries that support them, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told state television on Friday.
Detailing for the first time the Russian response to the price caps introduced by the West over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, Novak said the cuts could amount to 500,000-700,000 barrels per day.
The European Union, G7 nations and Australia introduced a $60 per barrel price cap on Russian oil from Dec. 5, on top of the EU's embargo on imports of Russian crude by sea and similar pledges by the United States, Canada, Japan and Britain.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he would issue a decree early next week detailing Moscow's actions in response to the price cap.
Novak said the decree would ban sales of oil and oil products to countries that join the price cap and companies that demand its observance.