OPEC SG: Impossible to Remove Iran from Oil Market
OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo visited Tehran exactly when Iran’s 24th annual Oil Show was under way.
He visited the exhibition, talked to journalists and then held a meeting with Iran’s Minister of Petroleum Bijan Zangeneh.
During the meeting, Zangeneh told Barkindo: “Iran is an OPEC member just for its interests and if certain fellow members intend to ask OPEC to threaten and jeopardize Iran’s interests, Iran will definitely react.”
The Iranian minister warned that due to “unilateralism” by certain OPEC member states, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries was likely to collapse.
Zangeneh said he discussed the problems and fragility of oil market with the OPEC secretary general.
He said they “exchanged views rather than making decisions”.
In the meeting, Barkindo laid emphasis on the fact that OPEC member states would take decisions collectively. He said that unilateral moves by OPEC member states have already proven to be futile.
Earlier, Barkindo told reporters that Iran could not be driven out of the oil market; sating individualism had no place within OPEC.
Referring to threats posed to Iran’s oil supply, he said discussions were under way at the ministerial level and within the OPEC Secretariat to study various approaches.
He said it was not the first time Iran was facing such challenges, adding he was optimistic Iran would overcome challenges this time, too.
Barkindo said OPEC had been faced with challenges regularly ever since its establishment six decades ago. He said these challenges had always been removed under the aegis of unity among OPEC member states.
Collective Wisdom
Iran sits atop the world’s largest hydrocarbon reserves. The US has imposed very tough sanctions against Iran’s petroleum industry, but it has failed to push Iran out of the global oil market.
Immediately after the US ended sanctions waivers for the main buyers of Iran’s crude oil, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – both OPEC member states – said they had enough spare capacity to replace Iran’s oil in the market.
Barkindo said OPEC would take decisions “collectively”, adding that unilateralism had no place in the OPEC decision-making process.
He said OPEC would make decisions based on “collective wisdom” after consultation with experts at the Secretariat and member states.
Barkindo said “industry practitioners have said without number” that Iran’s oil could not be removed from the market.
The OPEC Secretary General said the organization’s data as well as data provided by secondary sources would be reviewed during the June Conference before any decision would be made.
He said OPEC would not focus on the interests of any specific country, adding OPEC would take into consideration the collective interests of all member states in order to serve the interests of every single member state and guarantee oil supply.
Barkindo said every OPEC member state can have its own plans and decisions, but when they come together countries are not considered individually. He said OPEC would also take into account the interests of consumers.
Barkindo said OPEC decisions need to be based on the present circumstances.
He also heaped praise on Zangeneh because of his “experience and wisdom”, saying all member states of OPEC consider his advice.
Barkindo said challenges faced by Iran would affect the entire OPEC, adding that what is also happening currently in Venezuela and Libya would impact the whole oil market and the petroleum industry.