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LONDON (AFP) - Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo signaled here on Saturday that the OPEC group of oil-exporting nations will increase production again if the price of oil keeps going up.
He said Nigeria was committed to oil price stability and would lobby fellow members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to adopt a mechanism that would automatically link production levels to the price of oil. Obasanjo was speaking at the end of a four-day visit to Britain during which he met Prime Minister Tony Blair and other ministers. The trip to Britain coincided with a nationwide revolt over the price of fuel, with protesters blocking oil depots and refineries and causing petrol stations to run dry. Speaking at a press conference in the Nigerian High Commission in London, Obasanjo said OPEC nations would seek to get oil down from its current price of about $36 per barrel to a maximum of $28. "Any higher than that is regarded as too high," Obasanjo said. "OPEC is already doing something. Instead of 500,000 extra barrels a day, OPEC took the decision to pump out 750,000 barrels." "If that does not lead to the price stabilizing at the rate OPEC has chosen then OPEC will take further measures." The Nigerian president added: "We in OPEC are hoping to see a decision to institute a mechanism which allows OPEC members to increase production when the price of oil passes a certain level, and to reduce production automatically when it goes below a certain price level." "I believe we all need stability in the price of oil," Obasanjo. However, he said it "would not be fair" to blame OPEC for high oil prices, saying tax accounts for most of the price of fuel to the consumer. He said the issue of oil prices will "feature prominently" at the next meeting of OPEC leaders in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, later this month. "One of the things I am sure we will be talking about is how to bring stability to the price of oil," he told journalists. Obasanjo confirmed that world oil prices had come up in his talks with Blair, but denied it had been linked to Nigeria's foreign debt, which now stand at about $20 billion. He said Nigeria could not cut deals with its international creditors to cut oil prices in exchange for debt relief, because it had to agree any such deal with other OPEC members. "It does not work that way," he said. Obasanjo said he had won no firm commitments on debt relief from the British government, but said he was "satisfied" with the talks on debt. "Our debt is substantial and what we have achieved here ... is that we have got understanding," he said. "Her Majesty's government understands our position but they are also more than empathizing, they are sympathizing with our position." "There are certain things they would like to see us do as a precondition. One is how we manage to keep to the benchmarks within the IMF agreement," which commits Nigeria to economic reforms, he said. Obasanjo added: "To that extent I would say I am satisfied with my discussions on debt matters." Nigeria is the sixteenth largest oil exporter within OPEC, pumping out more than two million barrels a day. |
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