Saudi Arabian oil minister Khalid al-Falih said on Saturday that more work was needed to bring global oil inventories down.
“There is a general satisfaction with the strategy of 24 countries that signed a declaration of cooperation”, he said after a meeting attended by his Russian, Uzbek and Kazakh counterparts in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
Saudi Arabia and Russia are leading a deal between OPEC and non-OPEC producers to cut global oil production, with the aim of propping up oil prices.
“Everybody recognizes that (the) job is not done yet by any means, we still have significant amount of work to do to bring inventories down. Mission is not yet complete, more needs to be done,” he added.
He said members of the global pact he had spoken with have expressed the same views.
“This is the same sentiment I’ve heard yesterday from (Kazakh) President (Nursultan) Nazarbayev, this is the same sentiment I’ve heard from all the oil-producing members of the Asia energy ministers’ roundtable”, he said.
Officials from Malaysia, Ecuador, Nigeria and Libya have had also given him similar feedback, Falih said.
“All committed to working with other producers and supporting the agreement”, the Saudi oil minister added.
Falih has arrived Thursday in Uzbekistan for a working visit.
According to the Uzbek Foreign Ministry, the program of Saudi minister’s visit includes participation in the 51st meeting of the CIS Electric Power Council, to be held in Tashkent on Nov. 4.
Falih will also hold bilateral meetings and negotiations with the leadership of Uzbekenergo JSC and Uzbekneftegaz JSC.
