DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates is close to its oil output ceiling under OPEC+ agreements, an official said, ahead of a regional visit by US President Joe Biden, who is expected to lobby for increased production.

The Gulf state stressed it was committed to the OPEC+ figure of 3.168 million barrels of oil per day (bpd). Biden will visit neighbouring Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, as part of his tour next month.

“The UAE is producing near to our maximum production capacity based on its current OPEC+ production baseline, which the UAE is committed to until the end of the agreement,” said Energy and Infrastructure Minister Suhail bin Mohammed Al-Mazrouei, according to the official WAM news agency.

Oil production has come into sharp focus since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered extreme volatility in the markets, raising the price of fuel and other goods around the world.

Biden’s visit comes after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson flew to the UAE and Saudi Arabia in March but failed to secure any increases in production.

The Gulf countries and Russia are members of the OPEC+ group of oil producers, which accelerated production this month but is under pressure to deliver more.