Russia has decided to focus on cutting oil production rather than exports in the second quarter in order to spread the cuts evenly with other OPEC+ member countries, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said today.

Earlier this month, Russia announced it would cut its own oil production and exports by an additional 471,000 barrels per day (bpd) in the second quarter in cooperation with some OPEC+ countries.

Novak also told reporters that Russian oil companies would cut output in proportion to their share of the country’s total output.

Russia plans to ease export cuts: in April it will cut output by an extraordinary 350,000 bpd, with exports falling by 121,000 bpd. In May the extraordinary cuts will reach 400,000 bpd and the export cuts 71,000 bpd.

Russia, the world’s second-largest oil exporter, has cut crude and fuel exports by a combined 500,000 bpd in the first quarter, in addition to its pledges to cut output along with other OPEC+ members.

Russia’s move to further cut oil production, not exports, was an unexpected move.

JP Morgan, which earlier this month called it a surprise shift in strategy, said if Russia followed through on its promised cuts, the country’s crude output would drop to 9 million barrels per day by June, which corresponds to the production of Saudi Arabia.

Russia currently produces about 9.5 million bpd of crude oil.

“This is a measure (deepening production cuts) taken so that all countries contribute equally (to production cuts under the OPEC+ deal),” Novak said.

“As you remembered, we did not cut (production) by the volume, the percentage, that other countries cut. We had a decline in exports. This moment has come when, contrary to exports, we are reducing production,” he added.

Industry sources told Reuters on Monday that the Russian government has ordered companies to cut oil production in the second quarter to ensure they meet their production target of 9 million barrels a day by the end of June. consistent with the commitments to OPEC+.