Russian Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said on Friday it was “realistic” to reach oil prices of around $80 per barrel, Russian state news agencies reported.

He did not specify the oil grade but was likely referring to the Brent global benchmark.

Shulginov also said Russian oil and gas condensate production is expected to fall by around 20 million tonnes (400,000 barrels per day) this year, reiterating Russia’s expectations.

Prices of oil have been jittery this year as sluggish economic data in China and the United States, the global leading energy consumers, overshadowed output cuts by the leading oil producers at the OPEC+ group.

Benchmark Brent CLc1 oil is trading above $70 per barrel, having touched the $80 level in the second half of April, far below peaks of well over $100 last year.

In 2022, Russia’s combined oil and gas condensate production rose to 535 million tonnes (10.7 million bpd). Condensate is excluded from the production quotas used by the OPEC+ producers group for Russia.

Shulginov also said that Russia’s natural gas production has been behind official forecasts by up to 10%.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Reuters; editing by Philippa Fletcher)