AUSTRIA-RUSSIA-OPEC/OIL PRICES OPEC's Badri says he expects group to lower output target

Record ID: 344572

  • Title: AUSTRIA-RUSSIA-OPEC/OIL PRICES OPEC's Badri says he expects group to lower output target
  • Date: 16th September 2014
  • Summary: VIENNA, AUSTRIA (SEPTEMBER 16, 2014) (REUTERS) ****WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** EXTERIOR OF THE BUILDING OF ORGANIZATION OF THE PETROLEUM EXPORTING (OPEC) COUNTRIES OPEC LOGO AT THE ENTRANCE CONFERENCE ROOM WITH DELEGATES RUSSIAN ENERGY MINISTER, ALEXANDER NOVAK, AND RUSSIAN DELEGATES SEATED OPEC SECRETARY GENERAL, ABDALLAH ,EL-BADRI, SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (English) OPEC SECRETARY GENERAL, ABDALLAH EL-BADRI, SAYING: AUDIO OF REPORTER ASKING: "Do you think in 2015 the 30 million barrel per day target will still be appropriate?" BADRI SAYING: "No I don't think so, I think our production will be maybe 29.5 in 2015, not 30 million barrels per day." RUSSIAN ENERGY MINISTER, ALEXANDER NOVAK (L) AND BADRI SURROUNDED BY REPORTERS (SOUNDBITE) (English) OPEC SECRETARY GENERAL, ABDALLAH EL-BADRI, SAYING: "I think, everybody knows that the price is declining now for the last two months, I don't think this trend will continue. We are predicting that (the) price will come up by the end of the year." NOVAK TALKING TO REPORTER (SOUNDBITE) (English) OPEC SECRETARY GENERAL, ABDALLAH EL-BADRI, SAYING: "I have seen a lot of oil prices coming up or down and I think this is fluctuation of seasonal behaviour." NOVAK AND EL-BADRI EXITING BUILDING AND SHAKING HANDS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) RUSSIAN ENERGY MINISTER, ALEXANDER NOVAK ( IN RESPONSE TO QUESTION ON WHETHER HE DISCUSSED COORDINATING OIL PRICES WITH OPEC) SAYING: "No, we did not discuss it as it was not the subject of our meeting. Our meeting aimed at exchanging views regarding the prospects of oil and gas markets development and exchanging available information. We do not coordinate our oil prices in our meetings." EXTERIOR OF OPEC HEADQUARTERS
  • Embargoed: 1st October 2014 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Austria
  • Country: Austria
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVAAV8605G56C0ILNJ2J9V0GLQ34
  • Story Text: OPEC Secretary General Abdallah El-Badri told reporters on Tuesday (September 16) he expected the group to lower its oil output target when it meets next in late November.
    Badri was asked if OPEC's 30 million barrels per day output target would still be appropriate next year.
    "No, I don't think so, I think our production will be maybe 29.5 in 2015, not 30 million barrels per day," he told reporters.
    Badri said OPEC output often fluctuated slightly around its output target, but was pressed on whether he was referring to a possible change in the output target.
    He said the target may be lower by 500,000, and told reporters he expected that oil prices will climb back from recent losses.
    "I think, everybody knows that the price is declining now for the last two months, I don't think this trend will continue. We are predicting that (the) price will come up by the end of the year," Badri said.
    Oil prices have fallen below $100 per barrel for around a week.
    "I have seen a lot of oil prices coming up or down and I think this is fluctuation of seasonal behaviour," he added.
    Badri's comments came following a meeting between OPEC and Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak at the body's Vienna headquarters.
    Russia did not discuss any coordination on oil prices during the meeting, Novak said.
    "No, we did not discuss it as it was not the subject of our meeting. Our meeting aimed at exchanging views regarding the prospects of oil and gas markets development and exchanging available information. We do not coordinate our oil prices in our meetings," Novak said after meeting Badri.
    Western sanctions over Moscow's role in Ukraine's crisis have limited some of Russia's largest oil companies' ability to raise money in the West, potentially impacting their investment plans.
    Russia is the world's leading oil producing nation extracting around 10.5 million barrels per day (bpd).
    Novak said Russia planned to produce 80 million tonnes a year (1.6 million bpd) of hard-to-extract oil by 2030.
    Oil production as a total for this year is planned at 525 million tonnes, he said.
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