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The global deal to curb oil production has not led to breakthroughs in high reserves, and an unexpected increase in shale oil production from the United States could destabilize the market in 2018, according to the boss of Rosneft, Igor Sechin. The OPEC and other leading global producers, led by Russia, have agreed to cut their total yield by 1.8 million barrels per day to remove excess reserves and to support prices.

“The analysis shows that the announced goal of stabilizing reserves is not fully implemented and it is too early to talk about a turning point in global markets”, said Igor Sechin.

He is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and is known for his skepticism about OPEC’s ability to regulate the world oil market.

The OPEC+ oil yield quota deal aims to reduce reserve levels in leading industrial countries to their five-year average. According to OPEC, reserves in September are about 160 million barrels above the average, which is still less than 340 million barrels in January.

Sechin said that the rebalancing of supply and demand is fragile, as shale oil production in the US next year may increase significantly if oil prices remain relatively stable.

“That’s why I think we should not expect a leap in oil prices in the near future”, said Igor Sechin. “The key task is to create a unified system of measuring reserves and eliminating overfunding”, added he.

In his view, global efforts to stabilize the oil market are compounded by the lack of credible information on reserves and the balance between supply and demand. He also said that Saudi Aramco’s expected initial public offering could be a “fully developed international listing” due to legal risks, but it did not go into detail.

One of the possibilities includes selling some of the shares immediately to the so- key investors, such as China, and then selling stock on the local exchange and on an international market that is not yet clear whether it will be New York, London or Hong Kong.

