OPEC+ agrees to increases oil output amid Middle East turmoil
Eight members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) have collectively agreed to increase oil output by 206,000 b/d in May.
IMAGE: Oil storage tanks. Getty Images
Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the UAE, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman have “decided to implement a production adjustment” of 206,000 b/d from the 1.65 million b/d "additional voluntary adjustments announced in April 2023,” it said in a statement.
In November 2025, the eight members decided to pause production hikes in the first quarter of this year, citing steady market conditions.
The output hike decision comes amid the escalating US-Israeli conflict with Iran that has triggered repeated strikes on energy infrastructure across the Middle East and effectively choked off traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Saudi Arabia-led group has reiterated that the 1.65 million b/d “may be returned in part or in full subject to evolving market conditions and in a gradual manner.”
The group’s two leading producers, Saudi Arabia and Russia, are set to ramp up production by an additional 62,000 b/d each, to produce about 10.2 million b/d and 9.7 million b/d of crude oil in May, respectively.
Iraq is expected to produce about 4.3 million b/d next month, and the UAE will pump about 3.4 million b/d during the same time.
The eight OPEC+ members will next meet on 3 May 2026 to “review market conditions, conformity, and compensation.”
By Aparupa Mazumder
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