OPEC may cut output on June 11 to avoid 'crisis' - OPEC President Attiyah 26.05.2003 07:47 Headlines
DOHA (AFX) - The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries can be
expected to slash production at the ministerial meeting in Qatar on June 11 to
avoid a price collapse, OPEC President Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah told AFP
today.
"The cut will be the topic that will be very carefully" discussed, Attiyah
said, noting that confusion about Iraq's return to the market and inventories
made it difficult to set figures.
"I believe maybe we will cut it because we believe that in all earnestness
there will be more oil in the market and the market cannot accept it.
"We don't want to see this huge floating of oil, collecting dramatically and
putting pressure on the oil price. We don't want to see ourselves in the
position of 1999," when prices collapsed to 10 dollars a barrel on oversupply.
"Personally I believe 25 dollars is a very reasonable price," said Attiyah,
who is also Qatar's energy minister, reiterating the cartel's target rate.
"We will discuss the market situation very carefully. We would like to be
sure that we are on the safe side ... avoiding any crisis."
Iraq's return to the market after the US-led war is predicted to come around
the end of June, but Attiyah said it was difficult to read.
OPEC would "also treat very carefully the re-entry of Iraq to the market,"
at the June talks in Doha.
"It's really very difficult," he stressed, recalling conflicting reports of
the exact timing and how quickly Iraq would reach pre-war daily average
production of 2.7 mln barrels per day. "This also we have to study very
carefully
"The analysis is very confused now about when Iraq is coming," he said.
bp/sk/jkm/
DOHA (AFX) - The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries can be
expected to slash production at the ministerial meeting in Qatar on June 11 to
avoid a price collapse, OPEC President Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah told AFP
today.
"The cut will be the topic that will be very carefully" discussed, Attiyah
said, noting that confusion about Iraq's return to the market and inventories
made it difficult to set figures.
"I believe maybe we will cut it because we believe that in all earnestness
there will be more oil in the market and the market cannot accept it.
"We don't want to see this huge floating of oil, collecting dramatically and
putting pressure on the oil price. We don't want to see ourselves in the
position of 1999," when prices collapsed to 10 dollars a barrel on oversupply.
"Personally I believe 25 dollars is a very reasonable price," said Attiyah,
who is also Qatar's energy minister, reiterating the cartel's target rate.
"We will discuss the market situation very carefully. We would like to be
sure that we are on the safe side ... avoiding any crisis."
Iraq's return to the market after the US-led war is predicted to come around
the end of June, but Attiyah said it was difficult to read.
OPEC would "also treat very carefully the re-entry of Iraq to the market,"
at the June talks in Doha.
"It's really very difficult," he stressed, recalling conflicting reports of
the exact timing and how quickly Iraq would reach pre-war daily average
production of 2.7 mln barrels per day. "This also we have to study very
carefully
"The analysis is very confused now about when Iraq is coming," he said.
bp/sk/jkm/
