Kazakhstan will prioritise national interests over those of the OPEC+ group when deciding on oil production levels, the country's newly appointed energy minister told Reuters, ratcheting up the standoff with the group.

Kazakhstan is fulfilling its OPEC+ obligations and has an ongoing dialogue with the group to find “mutually acceptable solutions” to its oil production management, said Energy Minister Erlan Akkenzhenov.

Kazakhstan has sparked fresh tensions within OPEC+ by asserting that its oil production strategy will be governed by national interests rather than group quotas