Algeria’s energy minister said as he prepared to host a meeting of OPEC producers later this week that Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, has offered to cut its output to January levels.

After Saudi Arabia signaled that the Algiers meeting will be consultative and unlikely to reach a firm decision, prices tumbled 3.7 percent on Friday. The comments by Noureddine Boutarfa suggest OPEC’s leading member may still be willing to work toward the group’s first production curbs since the organization let members produce at will in late 2014 even though the comments would have very little effect on the prices.

Boutarfa said Sunday in an interview that compared to the position the time when the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries last met three months ago, the oil market is in a “much more critical” state.

“Saudi Arabia is ready to freeze production at the January level,” Boutarfa said. He called the “an interesting step.”

Data compiled by Bloomberg show that compared with 10.2 million in January, Saudi Arabia pumped a record 10.69 million barrels a day in August. Boutarfa said that Algeria wants the group to cut its collective output by 1 million barrels a day.

As Russia pumps at an all-time high and Libya and Nigeria restore disrupted supplies, more than 800,000 barrels a day of additional crude is flooding into the global market this month compared with August. The international Energy Agency said that persisting into late 2017 as demand growth slumps and supply proves resilient, the surplus will last for longer than previously thought. From Saudi Arabia to Gabon, tumbling crude has put financial pressure on OPEC members.

Rebounding only last month on speculation that OPEC and Russia might revive a pact to limit production, crude prices have dropped more than half from their 2014 peak amid a global supply glut. On Friday benchmark Brent crude futures fell 3.7 percent to $45.89 a barrel as prices have since cooled. Boutarfa said that a range of $50 to $60 a barrel would be a reasonable price for Algeria.

“The situation since the last meeting in June has worsened. So it’s important to see what measures can be adopted in the short term and very short term to find a solution to this situation that isn’t helping any OPEC country,” said Boutarfa.

Despite a Saudi offer to pump less crude if Iran caps output at current levels, according to two people familiar with the negotiations, Saudi Arabia and Iran did not reach an agreement after two days of preparatory talks in Vienna. The rivalry between the two countries blocked a deal with other major producers in April,

Boutarfa said that Iran will be present for this week’s discussions and this is the main difference between the Algiers talks and producers’ failed attempt at a freeze in April in Doha.

Falah Al-Amri, Iraq’s governor to the group said that crude prices may fall if its members fail to take a decision in Algiers and hence now is the “right time” for OPEC to reach an agreement on output. Al-Amri said on Sept. 22 at an energy event in Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates that current oil prices are not good for producers and countries have boosted output and reached their targets.

(Adapted from CNBC)