Mexico says Nigeria, RI cheated on oil cuts

Mexico says Nigeria, RI cheated on oil cuts

MEXICO CITY (Reuters): Mexico's Energy Minister Luis Tellez on Friday said Indonesia, Nigeria and probably Iran had not complied with their pledged oil production cuts in March's Riyadh pact.

Oil producers agreed in a pact from Riyadh spearheaded by Mexico, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, to cut 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) from world supply as of April, but official figures show cuts weighed in at about 900,000 bpd.

"We know that Indonesia has not fulfilled the production cuts it committed to, but it is a more complicated situation. Nigeria has not complied, but it is in the midst of a civil war," Tellez told reporters.

Indonesia pledged to cut 70,000 bpd from output, and Nigeria committed to 125,000 bpd. Neither country has said how much they may cut in a second round of cuts, which is expected to be ratified by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) at its meeting that begins on Wednesday.

Tellez added that he had heard Iran may not have complied, but said he could not be sure. Iran has agreed to trim a total 240,000 bpd in the two rounds of cutbacks.

While Tellez reiterated that Venezuela and Saudi Arabia had followed through with their pledged cuts from Riyadh, he did not explain his proof.

"Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Mexico, which were the countries promoting the agreements, are completing their reductions rigorously," he said.

Venezuela's oil monopoly chief Luis Giusti said earlier this week that not all producers had followed through with their promised cuts.

Non-OPEC Mexico committed to cut 100,000 bpd from its exports in the Riyadh pact, and in a second agreement in Amsterdam, pledged to cut another 100,000 bpd. After the cuts, Mexico would export an average 1.64 million bpd from July 1 through the end of the year.