OPEC+ oil producers on Wednesday agreed to stick to their plans for modest output growth in April, snubbing consumers’ requests for more crude, despite soaring crude prices. The Ukraine crisis was also ignored during the talks, according to a report by Reuters.

Oil prices shot above $110 per barrel this week, hitting their highest since 2014, as Western countries put more sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and disrupted oil supplies from Russia, one of the world’s largest oil producers.

By 13.15 GMT, the international oil benchmark Brent was trading above $113.

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The Western sanctions have deterred several buyers of Russian crude and also caused problems for exports from Kazakhstan, Russia’s neighbour and another member of OPEC+.

OPEC+, a group comprising the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and allied producers has been increasing output by 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) every month since August 2021 as they unwind cuts made when the pandemic slashed demand.

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According to a report by Reuters, the group has resisted several calls from the US and other major consumers for more supplies.

In a statement released after Wednesday’s meeting, the group made no mention of the Ukraine crisis and simply referred to “geopolitical developments” that were unsettling the market, as per the Reuters report.

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The OPEC+ statement said, “Current oil market fundamentals and the consensus on its outlook pointed to a well-balanced market, and that current volatility is not caused by changes in market fundamentals but by current geopolitical developments.”

The meeting lasted for less than a quarter of an hour and was the shortest meeting on record

Russia’s deputy prime minister, Alexander Novak, who represented Russia at the OPEC+ talks, said he hoped oil market volatility would ease. Russian output was expected to reach pre-pandemic levels in May, he added.

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The United States has repeatedly called for more supplies from OPEC+, but only a few countries have spare capacity, including OPEC’s de facto leader Saudi Arabia and its Gulf neighbour the UAE.

OPEC+ still has 2.6 million barrels per day of cuts it expects to unwind by the end of September. As the pandemic has receded, oil demand has rebounded sharply, pushing prices sharply higher.

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Saudi Arabia’s cabinet had reaffirmed its commitment to the OPEC+ deal on Tuesday, while Russian President Vladimir Putin had a phone call with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, reported Reuters.

The UAE, a close ally of the US, abstained in a February 25 vote on a UN Security Council resolution condemning Moscow’s actions in Ukraine.