OPEC+, which pumps about half the world’s oil, has paused oil output hikes for the first quarter of 2026 after releasing some 2.9 million barrels per day into the market since April 2025.
The group still has about 3.24 million bpd of output cuts in place, representing around 3 per cent of global demand.
Below is a summary of policies from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, known as OPEC+:
Three stages of cuts
The group’s total output cuts peaked at 5.85 million bpd in March. The cuts were performed in three stages:
1. Cuts by most of the 22 members of 2 million bpd. OPEC+ extended the cuts by a year until December 2026.
2. Voluntary cuts by eight members – Algeria, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Oman, Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – amounting to 1.65 million bpd.
3. Voluntary cuts by eight members – Algeria, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Oman, Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – amounting to 2.2 million bpd.
Gradual unwinding
From April, OPEC+ began to unwind voluntary cuts.
Eight OPEC+ members fully unwound the 2.2 million bpd layer between April and September.
OPEC+ also allowed the United Arab Emirates to increase output quotas by 300,000 bpd.
Since October, the eight members increased output by 411,000 bpd, leaving about 1.24 million bpd to unwind from the second layer of cuts of 1.65 million bpd.
Capacity debate
The 22-member OPEC+ will hold an online meeting on Sunday to debate a mechanism to assess the maximum sustainable production capacity for each member, OPEC+ sources have said.
In May, members asked OPEC’s headquarters to develop this mechanism, which would be used as reference for their 2027 production baselines.
