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Crude supply sufficient: Saudi, Norway |
RIYADH: Two of the world’s top oil exporters, Saudi Arabia and Norway, consider crude supply to the global market to be sufficient, according to a statement carried yesterday by state news agency SPA.
“The two parties noted the stability of the market in terms of the sufficiency of oil supplies,” SPA said.
Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi met his Norwegian counterpart Aaslaug Haga in Riyadh. The two discussed oil supply, demand and commercial stocks, SPA said.
Naimi has yet to signal Saudi Arabia’s position ahead of Opec’s next meeting to discuss oil output policy in Vienna on March 5.
Two weeks ago, he said any output decision would depend on how much crude stocks fell during winter.
Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil exporter and the most influential member of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec).
Opec price-hawk Iran said yesterday that the group should cut output in March.
But Gulf producers led by Saudi and Kuwait, both with close ties to Washington, are mindful of the potential effect of high prices on the slowing economy of the world’s largest energy consumer the US.
US crude settled at $95.50 a barrel on Friday, less than $5 below the January 3 record $100.09.
At its last meeting on February 1, Opec kept output steady despite calls from the US and other consuming nations for more supply to ease prices.
US calls for an output increase to help bring down high oil prices that Western countries fear will stunt economic growth and fuel inflation.
Though the world’s third-largest oil exporter Norway is not an Opec member, the Norwegian and Saudi oil ministers meet periodically to discuss the markets and energy industry developments.
The ministers also discussed carbon capture and storage (CCS), Norwegian oil ministry spokesman Stein Hernes, who is travelling with Haga, said.
Haga is scheduled to visit the national oil company Saudi Aramco on Monday. – Reuters |
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