Oil prices could rise to US$110 per barrel within a few weeks on speculation, which may prompt OPEC to raise production, a member of Kuwait’s Supreme Petroleum Council (SPC) said on Sunday, according to Reuters.
“Demand will increase slightly, but this increase in price is usually technical, due to analysts’ forecasts and speculations,” Imad al-Atiqi, member of the country’s highest oil policy body told the news wire in a telephone interview.
“This [$110 price level] could be a reason to increase production so the oil market does not get worried…especially if the rise was quick and crossed the $110,” he said.
On Wednesday Reuters quoted Kuwait’s oil minister as saying that he considered oil at $80 to $100 a barrel to be a “fair price” and did not expect OPEC to increase output in the first half of this year.
Sheikh Ahmad Al Abdullah Al Sabah said that he did not expect OPEC holding an extraordinary session ahead of the next scheduled meeting in June unless “something dramatic happens”, however he did not go into further details on this point.
On Tuesday the price of OPEC’s basket of 12 crudes stood at $91.27 a barrel, compared with $89.79 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.
Introduced in June 2005, the new OPEC Reference Basket is currently made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Qatar Marine (Qatar), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).
