The global market for crude oil had already factored in a return for Iran, the country's oil minister said. Increased Iranian oil production offsetting declines from other members of OPEC. File Photo by Maryam Rahmanian/UPI |
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TEHRAN, June 1 (UPI) -- The global market for crude oil is moving closer toward balance, suggesting Iran's return had already been factored in, the country's oil minister said.
Total crude oil production from members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries for April, the last full month for which data are available, was 32.4 million barrels per day, about 180,000 bpd higher than for March. Increased production from member states Iraq and Iran offset declines in Kuwait and Nigeria.
According to OPEC's latest figures, Iranian crude oil production for April of 3.4 million bpd was 20 percent higher than the average for the fourth quarter of 2015. Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zangeneh said exports, meanwhile, have doubled, but that increase in supply has not pushed crude oil prices lower.
"It is fortunate that the crude oil market, despite all the disruptions which took place recently, is restoring its balance," he was quoted by the ministry's news website SHANA as saying.
Crude oil prices started moving well below the $100 per barrel mark common in 2014 as a glut of oil persisted in the global economy through much of last year. In May, the International Energy Agency reported global crude oil supplies were gaining at a slower rate than last year, while growth forecasts for demand were revised higher because of strong gains in China, India and Russia. While total OPEC output has increased, the lower prices of crude oil have sidelined some production from the United States.
OPEC ministers meet Thursday in Vienna for their first general meeting since a proposal to freeze production at January levels collapsed when Iran said it would consider similar market control measures only after it regained the leverage it lost to sanctions. The freeze proposal was considered as an option to help push markets closer to balance.
Ahead of the meeting, Zangeneh said the role of OPEC is to ensure there is an appropriate market balance.
"The more OPEC fulfills this role, the more Iran will support the organization's goals and principal structure," he said.
