Saudi crown prince, Russia’s Vladimir Putin discuss Ukraine conflict and OPEC

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a “positive evaluation” about their joint cooperation in the Opec in a phone call on Saturday, the Kremlin said. The two leaders had a call together before since Russia began its military. The leaders also taken up the situation in Ukraine, the Kremlin said.

“Bilateral relations between the two countries and ways of enhancing them in all fields in a way that achieves the interests of the two countries were discussed [at the call],” the Saudi Press Agency said, without providing details about Opec+ or energy talks.

Prince Mohammed ” offered his support for efforts that would bring a political solution to the crisis in Ukraine. Western sanctions on Russian, which the war in Ukraine brought, caused in soaring prices of oil and gas exports, with Brent touching a notch under $140 per barrel in March.

The 23-member Opec + group, which includes Russia, have planned to add another 432,000 bpd of crude to the market in May, to maintain the increasing of the global oil supply and prices. The group will hold its next meeting on May 5.

Russia is the world’s second-largest energy exporter, accounting for about 10 % of the world’s energy output, including 17 % of its natural gas and 12 % of its oil. The International Energy Agency expected to decline further Moscow’s oil supply after US and UK have banned energy import from Russia.

In April, about 1.5 million barrels per day of production are expected to be shut-in, the agency said last week.From May onwards, close to 3 million bpd of Russian production could be out of order due to international sanctions.

Global benchmark for two-thirds of the world’s oil, brent stood at $111.70 a barrel at an additional 2.68 per cent by the end of Friday. West Texas Intermediate, which tracks U.S. crude oil, closed at $106.95 per barrel, an increase of 2.59 per cent.