Despite the production gains, the looser quotas meant OPEC+ compliance stayed mostly steady at 111.45% compared to 111.16% in April,

Overall conformity to the production adjustments was 114% in April (including Mexico), ... to gradually return 2 million barrels a day (mb/d) of the adjustments to the market, with the pace being determined according to market conditions.

Russia, the largest non-OPEC partner in the alliance, has increasingly flouted its cap over the last several months, with its excess production soaring to 877,000 b/d.

OPEC+ officials said they see no reason to be alarmed, and the group's production is set to rise anyway.

The Sinopec award comes on the heels of an agreement between Iraq and Total to jointly work on developing four associated gas and solar power projects.

With the production gains, OPEC+ compliance with its quotas slipped to 111% in March, compared with 113.5% in February, juiced by Saudi Arabia voluntarily cutting an additional 1 million b/d since January.

The OPEC+ alliance will raise its collective output caps by 350,000 b/d in May, another 350,000 b/d in June, and 441,000 b/d in July.

The positives offer hope, but we need to remember that the environment remains challenging, complex and uncertain, with the market volatility we have witnessed in the last two weeks of March a reminder of the fragility facing economies and oil demand.

OPEC+ will discuss whether to revive part of the 1.2 million barrels a day of output it’s committed to returning to the market in installments this year. At the same time, the Saudis will review the status of an additional 1 million barrel-a-day cut they have been making since February to accelerate the process of clearing the lingering oil glut.

Faltering oil prices in recent days after a weeks-long surge to around $70/b have many analysts forecasting that the OPEC+ group of producers may largely roll over their quotas for at least another month.