Russia oil production increasing

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MOSCOW, Dec. 4 (UPI) -- The Russian Energy Ministry states that crude oil and condensate production levels for November increased 0.5 percent and mark a post-Soviet record.

The ministry's reporting agency states that crude and condensate production reached 10.5 million barrels per day in November. That represents a 0.5 percent increase from the previous month and sets a post-Soviet record, Bloomberg News reports.

Russia ranks No. 2 in oil production behind Saudi Arabia. Last year, it was the largest producer of crude oil in the world, averaging around 9.8 million barrels per day, the U.S. Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said.

Bloomberg News reports that the Kremlin has ordered producers to maintain a level greater than 10 million bpd for the next 10 years. A production level greater than 10 million bpd was reached in 2009, nearly a decade after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The EIA states that most of the Russian oil production comes from the Priobskoye and Samotlor fields in Western Siberia.