Exclusive: Russia calls for new enlarged OPEC deal to tackle oil demand collapse - Reuters

Exclusive: Russia calls for new enlarged OPEC deal to tackle oil demand collapse - Reuters:

A new OPEC+ deal to balance oil markets might be possible if other countries join in, Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund said, adding that countries should also cooperate to cushion the economic fallout from coronavirus.

A pact between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producers, including Russia (known as OPEC+), to curb oil production to support prices fell apart earlier this month, sending global oil prices into a tailspin.

“Joint actions by countries are needed to restore the(global) economy... They (joint actions) are also possible in OPEC+ deal’s framework,” Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), told Reuters in a phone interview.

Dmitriev and the Energy Minister Alexander Novak were Russia’s top negotiators in the production cut deal with OPEC. The existing deal expires on March 31.