TEHRAN - Continued OPEC production at current levels would lead to over-supply of its crude in the first half of 2009, causing prices to drop, Iran's OPEC governor was quoted as saying on Sunday.
Mohammad Ali Khatibi, speaking two days before OPEC ministers meet in Vienna, also told the official IRNA news agency that oil prices could not fall below $80 per barrel as this was the production cost cited for some new fields.
The price of oil has tumbled from a record above $147 in July to below $107 on Friday. Khatibi said a falling price would not benefit consumers either as it would affect investment.
Khatibi, who last week said OPEC may need to cut supplies by as much as 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) to balance global markets by early next year, said demand for the group's oil was forecast at about 31 million bpd for the first six months of next year.
"OPEC's oil production currently ... is between 32.6 and 32.8 million bpd," he was quoted as saying.
Khatibi said that if this amount of output continued OPEC would be sending a lot of over-supply to the market, which would lead to a fall of crude prices, IRNA said.
In the run-up to the September 9 meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Iranian oil officials have said the group's members should cut output to their agreed targets in order to reduce over-supply.
OPEC does not officially have quotas but the term is sometimes used to describe agreed output targets for each member country. Some, notably Saudi Arabia, have been producing above these targets.
"OPEC is committed to produce oil in accordance to the market's needs," Khatibi said. "Because of the fall of prices the necessity of extra crude production by some members which do not respect the agreed production ceilings does not exist."
"Currently the market does not need any more oil and with the fall of prices there is no need for over-supply ... members should return to the agreed levels and respect that," he added.
Iran is traditionally hawkish on price. Another price hawk, Venezuela, said record prices near $150 were "irrational" and that they would probably settle around $100.
Iran's oil minister, Gholamhossein Nozari, last week said $100 was the lowest appropriate oil price.
Khatibi said falling crude prices would affect investment in the industry and suggested this would harm consumers as well.
"Based on the announcement of international oil companies, in some new oil fields the production costs for each barrel of crude is $80 ... the oil price can not be less than this," he said, according to IRNA.
Mohammad Ali Khatibi, speaking two days before OPEC ministers meet in Vienna, also told the official IRNA news agency that oil prices could not fall below $80 per barrel as this was the production cost cited for some new fields.
The price of oil has tumbled from a record above $147 in July to below $107 on Friday. Khatibi said a falling price would not benefit consumers either as it would affect investment.
Khatibi, who last week said OPEC may need to cut supplies by as much as 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) to balance global markets by early next year, said demand for the group's oil was forecast at about 31 million bpd for the first six months of next year.
"OPEC's oil production currently ... is between 32.6 and 32.8 million bpd," he was quoted as saying.
Khatibi said that if this amount of output continued OPEC would be sending a lot of over-supply to the market, which would lead to a fall of crude prices, IRNA said.
In the run-up to the September 9 meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Iranian oil officials have said the group's members should cut output to their agreed targets in order to reduce over-supply.
OPEC does not officially have quotas but the term is sometimes used to describe agreed output targets for each member country. Some, notably Saudi Arabia, have been producing above these targets.
"OPEC is committed to produce oil in accordance to the market's needs," Khatibi said. "Because of the fall of prices the necessity of extra crude production by some members which do not respect the agreed production ceilings does not exist."
"Currently the market does not need any more oil and with the fall of prices there is no need for over-supply ... members should return to the agreed levels and respect that," he added.
Iran is traditionally hawkish on price. Another price hawk, Venezuela, said record prices near $150 were "irrational" and that they would probably settle around $100.
Iran's oil minister, Gholamhossein Nozari, last week said $100 was the lowest appropriate oil price.
Khatibi said falling crude prices would affect investment in the industry and suggested this would harm consumers as well.
"Based on the announcement of international oil companies, in some new oil fields the production costs for each barrel of crude is $80 ... the oil price can not be less than this," he said, according to IRNA.
