EU officials reassured members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) at a meeting in Vienna on Thursday that the promotion of alternative energy sources was not a move against OPEC. The overarching issue at the 4th EU-OPEC Energy dialogue, established in 2004, were current oil prices and bottlenecks in refining capacities. Both OPEC Secretary General Abdalla Selem El-Badri and EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs rejected calls for increasing supply, according to a report of the news agency "DPA." An output increase would go into stockpiles and not bring down prices, El-Badri said, as there was a tightness in refining capacities - an area where OPEC had no influence. "More oil will not mitigate the gasoline prices," he said at a press conference after the meeting. The EU would take action on the issue when a study to be released in September had provided sufficient data, Piebalgs said. The current volatility of markets was a cause of concern for both parties. "Volatility is our worst enemy," El-Badri said, adding that solutions had to be found for this "irritating" factor. --MORE
