Russia plots new oil production cut to starve the west of fuel

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said Thursday that Moscow may cut its daily crude oil output by up to 700,000 barrels in response to the Biden administration’s and other wealthy nations’ move to target Russian energy profits, according to Bloomberg.

On Dec. 5, the Group of Seven developed democracies (G7) placed a $60 per barrel price cap on Russian oil to simultaneously reduce Russian energy revenues that are funding its invasion of Ukraine and bring down global fuel prices. During an appearance on Russian state TV, Novak said that the nation could cut crude production in early 2023 by 500,000 to 700,000 barrels per day, equal to roughly five to six percent of what the nation is currently pumping, Bloomberg reported.

“We are ready to partially cut our production early next year,” Novak said in an interview with Rossiya-24 TV channel. “Right now we’d rather take a risk of a production cut than stick to the policy of selling in line with the threshold,” he stated, adding that the potential cuts would be “insignificant.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin told reporters Thursday that he would sign a decree to deploy “preventative measures” aimed at countering the West’s price cap, according to Bloomberg. Oil prices have risen over the past two weeks with the price of Brent crude, the leading oil price benchmark, hitting $83 per barrel on Friday.

Putin told reporters in early December that he would consider cutting oil production in response to the price cap and warned that Europe would suffer a harsh winter due to the cap’s ability to exacerbate soaring energy prices. Fuel prices could rise once again as Russian production cuts combined with recovering Chinese oil demand could squeeze global crude supplies, Bloomberg reported.

The Russian Embassy in Washington, D.C. did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

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