Olesya Astakhova and Alex Lawler, Ahmad Ghaddar

MOSCOW/LONDON – Despite oil reaching $100 a bar, OPEC+ has not broken ground since Russia invaded Ukraine.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) meets March 2nd to determine whether or not to boost April’s output by 400,000 barrels per hour (bpd).

OPEC+, which was created in 2016, is a coordination of output cuts. Its current unwinding is a result of earlier shortages and weaker demand in the aftermath.

Despite U.S. warnings that Russia was invading Ukraine, OPEC’s Gulf members were close allies of the U.S., highlighting how the producer group lies across certain geopolitical faultlines.

An oil source in Russia said that OPEC+ had held informal talks Wednesday during which Moscow discussed its position on Ukraine. The other OPEC+ members seemed to have a neutral stance.

Senior OPEC+ sources denied that this was the end for OPEC+.

The Russian oil source stated that Russia is in a strong partnership with Saudi Arabia, and the Russian cooperation will continue. For now, no major changes can be expected in the upcoming meeting.

Other OPEC+ sources said that they did not expect any changes to the agreement. The reasons they cited included maintaining the cohesion and keeping a steady track, as well as the need not to politicize the decision because OPEC+ does not operate in a political environment.

Russia and Saudi Arabia are the largest producers of OPEC+, and they jointly preside over it.

One source said that high-priced items will not affect relations. “OPEC+ has a deal, and they will adhere to it.”

Since last year, OPEC+ has resisted pressures from the United States and other countries to continue pumping oil.

Sources did not predict a larger increase of 400,000 bpd next week.