OPEC considering 500,000 bpd increase to offset oil price hikes

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is considering a further increase of 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) to offset hikes in oil prices, OPEC president Sheikh Ahmed Al Fahd Al Sabah said in Kuwait city Saturday.

Al-Sabah, who is also Kuwait's oil minister, made the remarks to reporters on the sidelines of the European-Gulf Energy Seminar, which opened Saturday.

The OPEC will increase its overall production ceiling by 500,000bpd to meet expected world demand, he said, adding "for sure, there will be an increase in the third quarter and fourth quarter, and the increase will start from May."

Oil prices have soared anew and the OPEC has to start a new round of negotiations, he stressed.

During its meeting in Isfahan, Iran, last month, the OPEC increased its production ceiling by 500,000 to 27.5 million bpd, and provided for another 500,000 bpd increase if crude prices didn't stabilize.

Prices have continued climbing to record levels as crude futures for May delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange closed Friday up 1.87 US dollars, or 3.4 percent, at 57.27 dollars a barrel.

Source: Xinhua