OPEC+ agrees emergency 1.5 million barrel production increase as oil price surge threatens global growth
Saudi Arabia and the Gulf OPEC members secured agreement on an emergency production boost of 1.5 million barrels per day, overcoming resistance from Russia and Iran-aligned members in an attempt to prevent oil from reaching $130 a barrel.
Economy — March 13, 2026
OPEC+ members agreed at an emergency virtual ministerial meeting in mid-March 2026 to increase collective production by 1.5 million barrels per day, overcoming opposition from Russia and several smaller members to implement the largest emergency production adjustment since the COVID-19 pandemic in order to address oil price surges driven by the conflict involving Iran.
Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman convened the emergency session after Brent crude broke through $115 per barrel. The kingdom advocated for a significant production boost to prevent further price increases it feared would undermine global economic growth and trigger demand destruction that would ultimately harm OPEC members' revenues.
Russia, which has benefited financially from elevated prices, initially resisted the increase, arguing that geopolitical supply uncertainty required a cautious approach. A compromise was reached after Saudi Arabia agreed to absorb approximately 700,000 barrels of the increase itself, reducing the burden on other members.
Iran, whose production and export capacity had been disrupted by US and Israeli strikes on energy infrastructure, was exempted from the production increase targets. The effective volume increase from the remaining members therefore totalled 1.1 million barrels per day net of Iran's reduced output.
The announcement produced an initial easing of approximately $5 to $6 per barrel, with Brent falling from $117 to around $111 following the news. However, analysts cautioned that the production increase could not fully offset the risk of Iranian supply disruption and Strait of Hormuz closure, which represented the dominant market concern.
Iraq and the UAE both indicated they would be able to increase production within 45 days, drawing on spare capacity that had been held in reserve under previous OPEC+ production management agreements. The combined additional supply from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and the UAE was estimated at approximately 900,000 barrels per day.
Energy economists noted that the OPEC+ response highlighted the unusual dynamics of the current crisis: the alliance was attempting to moderate prices while one of its own members — Iran — was the source of the supply risk, creating a fundamental conflict of interest within the group's governance structure.
