Washington briefing: Azerbaijan, Russia cut oil output as prices fall

by Emil Sanamyan

Published: Saturday December 20, 2008

Azerbaijan and Russia joined with the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in announcing a big cut in oil production this week, news agencies reported.

OPEC producers agreed to cut production from current levels of 27.3 million barrels a day by 2 million, while Russia and Azerbaijan said they would cut production by 300,000 barrels a day each.

The cut would represent a more than 35 percent reduction for Azerbaijan from the current production level of 840,000 barrels a day. Azerbaijani production - most by the BP-led consortium - peaked at over one million barrels earlier this year.

Oil prices have fallen from the high of $147 per barrel in July to under $40 this week.