⁍ OPEC oil output has risen for a third month in September, a Reuters survey found.

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⁍ Libya and Iran are two of the OPEC members exempt from an supply pact.

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⁍ The pact has helped to boost prices in 2020 from historic lows in April.

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– Oil prices have been in freefall this month, dropping more than 10% in September to around $40 a barrel, the lowest level in more than two decades. But a Reuters survey finds that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ output has risen for a third month in a row, up 160,000 barrels per day in September to 24.38 million bpd. “While demand struggles to keep up, supply is rising,” says Rystad Energy analyst Paola Rodriguez-Masiu. “Libya’s production is coming back.” OPEC and allies including Russia, known as OPEC+, have cut production by nearly 10 million bpd since May. Since August, the group has been pumping more as the cut tapered to 7.7 million bpd due to a partial demand recovery, of which OPEC’s share is 4.868 million bpd. In September, OPEC countries bound by the deal delivered 101% of the pledged reduction. September’s increase means OPEC is pumping about 2 million bpd more than June’s figure, which was the lowest since 1991 based on Reuters surveys and OPEC data. The survey found output increased on average by 70,000 bpd in September. Iranian supply rose by 120,000 bpd as exports have increased in September in defiance of US sanctions, according to the average of assessments based on tanker tracking that fall into a wider range than in previous months. Venezuela, the third OPEC member exempt from supply cut, also managed to supply more in September. Among the OPEC members bound by the supply pact, Angola delivered September’s biggest increase of 60,000 because of higher exports. Industry sources said the UAE is compensating for its August increase.