U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry will meet counterparts from Saudi Arabia and Russia starting on Sept. 9, sources familiar with the matter said, as the Trump administration encourages oil-producing countries to keep output up two months before it is due to renew sanctions on Iran’s crude exports.
Perry will meet Khalid al-Falih, Saudi Arabia’s energy minister, and other officials from the kingdom, the world’s largest oil exporter, in Washington on Sept. 9, a U.S. government source said.
The U.S. energy secretary will also meet with Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak on Sept. 13 in Moscow, the U.S. source and a diplomatic source said.
High oil prices are a political risk for President Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans in Nov. 6 congressional elections. Global oil prices have risen to more than $76 a barrel in recent weeks on concerns about sanctions on Iran’s oil exports that Washington will renew on Nov. 4.
Trump withdrew the U.S. in May from the nuclear deal with Iran, and he is pushing consuming countries to cut their purchases of Iranian oil to zero. The administration may issue some waivers, but some countries, including India, have already reduced purchases of the oil ahead of the sanctions.
Perry will be the most senior U.S. official to visit Russia since Trump met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki in July to try to improve ties that have dipped to a post-Cold War low.
Moscow and Washington are at odds over U.S. accusations of Russian meddling in U.S. politics, Syria, Ukraine and the poisoning of a former Russian spy in Britain.
Officials from the U.S. and Russia, two of the world’s largest oil and natural gas producers, formerly met regularly to discuss energy issues. Those meetings stopped in 2014 after Russia annexed Crimea.
Trump has said he wants to improve ties, but his administration is considering imposing new sanctions on Moscow, as is the U.S. Congress.
Novak has said the U.S. should not be permitted to impose such sanctions without a vote of the U.N. Security Council, of which Russia is a permanent member.
Perry and Novak, who last met in June in Washington, will likely discuss Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline project to carry Russian gas to Germany under the Baltic Sea. Trump and former U.S. President Barack Obama have criticized the project, saying it would increase Russian influence in Europe, but Germany supports the pipeline.
Perry and Novak are also expected to discuss oil market cooperation between OPEC, of which Saudi Arabia is the largest producer, and non-OPEC countries, including Russia.
OPEC and non-OPEC officials will meet later this month to discuss proposals for sharing an oil output increase, after the groups decided in June to boost output moderately.
Perry, al-Falih and Darren Woods, the CEO of ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), were introduced on Sept. 8 to the crowd at a Texas A&M University football game in College Station, Texas. All three graduated from the university.
Recommended Reading
Chevron Hunts Upside for Oil Recovery, D&C Savings with Permian Pilots
2024-02-06 - New techniques and technologies being piloted by Chevron in the Permian Basin are improving drilling and completed cycle times. Executives at the California-based major hope to eventually improve overall resource recovery from its shale portfolio.
CEO: Continental Adds Midland Basin Acreage, Explores Woodford, Barnett
2024-04-11 - Continental Resources is adding leases in Midland and Ector counties, Texas, as the private E&P hunts for drilling locations to explore. Continental is also testing deeper Barnett and Woodford intervals across its Permian footprint, CEO Doug Lawler said in an exclusive interview.
For Sale, Again: Oily Northern Midland’s HighPeak Energy
2024-03-08 - The E&P is looking to hitch a ride on heated, renewed Permian Basin M&A.
TPH: Lower 48 to Shed Rigs Through 3Q Before Gas Plays Rebound
2024-03-13 - TPH&Co. analysis shows the Permian Basin will lose rigs near term, but as activity in gassy plays ticks up later this year, the Permian may be headed towards muted activity into 2025.
Strike Energy Updates 3D Seismic Acquisition in Perth Basin
2024-04-19 - Strike Energy completed its 3D seismic acquisition of Ocean Hill on schedule and under budget, the company said.