OPEC officials said on Thursday that the cartel is keen to increase investments that would boost production of crude oil, and is considering joint ventures with the European Union (EU) in new oil refineries.

"We think we have the capability to secure supply to the market, especially in the third and fourth quarter of this year, without any problem," said Sheik Ahmed Fahd Al Ahmed Al Sabah, president of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), told a joint press conference after meeting with EU officials.

"We are also willing to discuss joint investments downstream," said Al Sabah, who is also Kuwait's energy minister.

EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs urged the OPEC to boost production to prevent oil prices from harming Europe's economy.

In April the EU cut its forecast of growth this year in the 12- nation euro-zone to 1.6 percent from 2 percent. Europe consumes about 20 percent of the world's oil.

Earlier this week, Al Sababh has proposed a 500,000 barrel per day (bpd) hike in the cartel's output ceiling at a meeting next week in Vienna if prices remain too high.

OPEC's current ceiling is set at 27.5 million bpd, but the group 's members are pumping above that.

Nigeria's presidential adviser for energy affairs, Edmund Daukoru, said that OPEC will consider a formal production increase at the Vienna meeting

"We probably need to make a gesture; that gesture could be to increase actual production or simply formalize what we are already doing," Daukoru said.

"The final decision depends on what the price is doing in the next few days," he added.

The Brussels talks were the first at this level between the two organizations. They were called to discuss long-term issues of energy supply security and cooperation.

The second meeting of the EU-OPEC Energy Dialogue will be held in Vienna at a mutually agreed date.

Source: Xinhua