Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Dr Ibe Kachikwu, has said a ‘couple’ of members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) are requesting an emergency meeting, saying the current market conditions justify the need to hold such a gathering.
Benchmark Brent crude oil futures LCOc1 were trading at less than $31 per barrel Tuesday, their lowest level since April 2004, and have shed almost three-quarters of their value since mid-2014. At the current price, it means oil prices have fallen to near-12-year low.
Kachikwu told reporters at an energy conference in Abu Dhabi that there was a lot of push from various blocs within OPEC for a meeting.
“A couple of countries, I don’t want to mention names,” he said when asked if any had requested holding an emergency meeting.
Any meeting that would take place would be to review OPEC’s position to see if there was any need to change its strategy, Kachikwu said, adding that the meeting could take place in February or March.
Kachikwu told AFP that he expects an extraordinary meeting of the OPEC oil cartel in “early March” to address nosediving crude prices.
“We did say that if it (the price) hits the 35 (dollar per barrel), we will begin to look (at)… an extraordinary meeting,” said Kachikwu.
The prices have hit levels that necessitate a meeting, he told an energy forum in Abu Dhabi.
The US crude oil price tumbled below $31 a barrel Tuesday, extending a sell-off that has pushed it to more than 12-year lows amid a global supply glut, a strong dollar and tepid demand.
Saudi-led Gulf exporters within OPEC have so far refused to cut production to curb sliding prices, seeking to protect their market share despite a heavy blow to their revenues.
Kachikwu, who was president of OPEC until the end of December, said that member states differ on the issue of intervention.
“One group feels there is a need to intervene. The other group feels even if we did, we are only 30 to 35 percent of the producers really,” as 65 per cent of supply comes from non-OPEC countries, he said at the Gulf Intelligence UAE Energy Forum.
“Unless you have this 65 percent (of) producers coming back to the table, you really won’t make any dramatic difference,” he added.
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