VENEZUELA: OPEC SECRETARY-GENERAL RILWANU LUKMAN CAUTIONS INDUSTRIALISED NATIONS AGAINST RELEASING OIL-RESERVES
Record ID:
222953
VENEZUELA: OPEC SECRETARY-GENERAL RILWANU LUKMAN CAUTIONS INDUSTRIALISED NATIONS AGAINST RELEASING OIL-RESERVES
- Title: VENEZUELA: OPEC SECRETARY-GENERAL RILWANU LUKMAN CAUTIONS INDUSTRIALISED NATIONS AGAINST RELEASING OIL-RESERVES
- Date: 25th September 2000
- Summary: CARACAS, VENEZUELA (SEPTEMBER 24, 2000) (REUTERS TELEVISION) 1. SLV OPEC NEWS CONFERENCE; SCU MEDIA (2 SHOTS) 0.10 2. (SOUNDBITE) (English) OPEC SECRETARY-GENERAL RILWANU LUKMAN SAYING "A lot of people talk about high prices now. There's all this talk about prices going from ten dollars a barrel to thirty dollars a barrel. They forget very conveniently that the prices came down from over twenty dollars a barrel to ten dollars a barrel. We're trying to put them back to a better range. We're interested in a price to average about twenty five dollars a barrel. And this is a price which even America is happy with so we are doing everything we can to make prices low. But the other point of the price of products is it is not only composed of crude. The price of product includes the price cost of refinement and transportation. It also includes very importantly the tax element which the consumer has to pay in the consuming countries. In some countries the tax is up to eighty percent of the price. So we are not responsible for that. But that is another issue we will keep pointing out. If the consuming country governments want their citizens to have lower prices for the product the correct thing for them to do is not only to ask us to lower the price of crude which we are already doing but also to moderate their taxes which are exorbitantly high." 1.31 3. SCU MEDIA 1.36 4. (SOUNDBITE) (English) OPEC SECRETARY-GENERAL RILWANU LUKMAN SAYING "We have always clearly stated that we are not overtly interested in high prices. That is why we have an upper limit price that we believe we should not allow prices to go beyond that limit. That is why we are taking trouble to put extra oil in the market. This will be the third occasion this year. The first time we put one point seven million barrels in March. Then in June we put another 700,000 barrels. Then in October we're going to put another 800,000 barrels. This is not an action of an organization that wants extremely high prices. If we are really interested in keeping prices up we would not put extra oil in the market. So we are more concerned about bringing prices to moderate levels." 2.29 5. SCU MEDIA 2.36 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 10th October 2000 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: CARACAS, VENEZUELA
- Country: Venezuela
- Reuters ID: LVA3KOO18VL1U709TNNJF7F701LU
- Story Text: OPEC secretary-general Rilwanu Lukman has cautioned
industrialised nations against following the U.S. lead in
releasing strategic oil reserves to counter high prices, in
case they need them "for real emergencies."
OPEC Secretary-General Rilwanu Lukman said on Sunday
(September 24) that OPEC was not "overtly interested in high
prices."
"That is why we have an upper limit price that we believe
we should not allow prices to go beyond that limit. That is
why we are taking trouble to put extra oil in the market,"
Lukman told a news conference ahead of the oil producer
group's summit this week in Caracas.
Lukman said in October would be the third occasion this
year that OPEC put extra oil in the market.
"The first time we put 1.7 million barrels in March. Then
in June we put another 700,000 barrels. Then in October we're
going to put another 800,000 barrels. This is not an action of
an organization that wants extremely high prices. If we are
really interested in keeping prices up we would not put extra
oil in the market. So we are more concerned about bringing
prices to moderate levels," he said.
Lukman said he hoped that the U.S. move together with an
800,000 barrel per day increase OPEC will implement from
October 1 would moderate prices but he said the group would
work to avoid prices falling back too far.
"A lot of people talk about high prices now. There's all
this talk about prices going from ten dollars a barrel to
thirty dollars a barrel. They forget very conveniently that
the prices came down from over twenty dollars a barrel to ten
dollars a barrel. We're trying to put them back to a better
range. We're interested in a price to average about twenty
five dollars a barrel. And this is a price which even America
is happy with so we are doing everything we can to make prices
low," said Lukman.
OPEC oil ministers meeting on Tuesday (September 26) would
not emerge with any new supply decision, Lukman said, adding
that the group had the option to raise supply at the end of
October under its price stability mechanism.
This week's summit, only the second in the group's 40-year
history, will help OPEC's efforts to work together to manage
oil prices, he said.
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