Oil producers seek to build stronger ties
IRAN IS AN IMPORTANT MEMBER OF OPEC AND WILL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH ALL PARTIES — SECRETARY GENERAL
Opec is looking at longterm cooperation with non-Opec members, which will bring stability to oil markets, secretary general Mohammad Barkindo said yesterday in Fujairah
The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries is looking at having a long-term cooperation agreement in place with non-Opec members by December which will bring stability to the oil markets, Opec secretary general Mohammad Barkindo said in Fujairah on Tuesday.
Opec is currently cooperating with non-Opec members such as Russia as part of an agreement called the Declaration of Cooperation to reduce production by about 1.8 million barrels per day to prop up oil prices.
The agreement was subsequently changed at the last Opec meeting in June when the oil producing countries decided to increase production by about one million barrels per day as rising oil prices were dampening demand and creating problems for high oil consuming countries like India and China.
Speaking at the Gulf Intelligence Energy Markets Forum in Fujairah, Barkindo said the Declaration of Cooperation has become a permanent feature in the global energy scene and will continue to stay.
“What we are working now is to make it [Declaration of Cooperation] more permanent and institutionalise the framework. Our target is to have a longer cooperation framework in place by December when we reconvene in Vienna,” Barkindo said.
He also expects oil demand to grow in the foreseeable future with oil and gas dominating the energy basket until 2040.
“What is required now and is also of great concern not only for us but also for consumers is the ability to continue to attract investment in predictable fashion to meet current oil demand and also the future demand,” he added.
Speaking on the current oil market, he said it continues to evolve with both fundamental and non-fundamental factors impacting it.