Saudi Arabia's Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi said Saturday that current global oil prices are “perfect,” as several key Arab OPEC members attending a meeting in Egypt agreed Saturday that there was no reason why the organization should change its production quota at a meeting on Dec. 22 in Angola. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which supplies roughly 35 percent of the world's crude, has held its quotas unchanged since last year's record 4.2 million barrels per day in cuts. The cut brought down the total output of the group - excluding Iraq -- to 24.84 million bpd. Speaking on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries, Al-Naimi said the market is stable and “volatility is at a minimum.” Since last December, OPEC has focused on boosting compliance with output quotas of its 12 member states. The group's approach has helped oil prices rebound to almost $80 per barrel recently, after they collapsed last year as the world's worst recession in decades sapped demand for crude. “Everything is so good now, we don't have to think very hard,” Al-Naimi said, reflecting an agreement among OPEC members to keep production quotas unchanged at the Dec. 22 conference. “The market is stable right now, volatility is minimum and everybody is happy with the price. It is in the right range,” said Al-Naimi. Asked if he was not worried about the high level of inventories in international markets, Al-Naimi said: “Of course…. inventories are coming down, the price is perfect and all investors, consumers, producers are all very happy.” The benchmark crude oil contract for January delivery settled at $75.47 a barrel on Friday on the New York Mercantile Exchange, hitting a seven-week low on high global inventories and the strong dollar. Ministers from several key Arab OPEC nations, however, indicated that they were satisfied with the current market situation and said it was unlikely the group would change quota levels at its Dec. 22 meeting in Luanda, Angola. Kuwaiti Oil Minister Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah Al-Sabah echoed him. “There will be no increase in production whatsoever,” he said, adding he believes there is a consensus among all OPEC members to maintain status quo. Qatar's Energy Minister Abdullah Al-Attiyah also said OPEC will roll over current production levels but will monitor the market next year. “I believe the decision will be to maintain the current production levels and then wait until 2010,” to assess the situation, Attiyah said. Arab ministers said oil price was satisfactory though Algerian Oil Minister Chakib Khelil said it is “a bit low.” Libyan Oil Minister Shukri Ghanem said there are no objections among OPEC members to a production rollover in Angola. Libya has delayed plans to raise its oil output capacity until 2017 because of budget constraints and the market situation, Ghanem said. “Our plan was to reach three million barrels per day by 2012, but because of the market conditions, as well as budget constraints,” we delayed it to 2017, Ghanem told reporters in Cairo on the margins of an Arab oil meeting. “By 2016-2017, we can reach the three million bpd target, but we need more budget allocations,” he said. Libya's current production capacity is “almost two million bpd” and it is producing its OPEC quota of 1.5 million bpd, he added. Ghanem also confirmed reports earlier this week from Tripoli that US petroleum company Hess has discovered new gas deposits in the Gulf of Sirte, where it operates in coordination with Libya's National Oil Corp (NOC). “National Oil Company and Hess Corp. found quite a big field of gas in the Gulf of Sirte about three days ago,” he said. Daily production is estimated to be around 27 million cubic feet (765,000 cubic meters) and reserves are estimated “in excess of five to six trillion cubic feet (142-170 billion cubic meters),” he added.
