Algeria's Energy and Mines Minister Chakib Khelil said on Monday there was "not much" Opec could do to bring down high oil prices as global crude stocks were already sufficient. "There is plenty of stocks. It's a problem with capacity and refining," Khelil told Reuters ahead of a gas pipeline conference in Brussels.
"Even if it (Opec) increases production, it's just going to increase stocks and not have any effect because prices are drawn by petroleum product prices."
Brent crude prices climbed to an 11-month high above $76 a barrel on Friday, closing in on the record of $78.65 hit in August 2006 before easing on Monday as traders booked profits. Asked when oil prices would start to hurt the economy, he said: "They haven't for the last eight years so I don't see how they could be hurting the economy."
Khelil's comments echo remarks made repeatedly by other Opec ministers. They coincided with a warning from the International Energy Agency on Monday of a coming supply crunch as world oil demand rises faster than expected to 2012 while production lags.
At a briefing following the conference, Khelil said there was plenty of oil to supply the market and to meet demand. "As the demand grows, there is plenty of oil right now. There is plenty of oil available to supply that demand." He said high oil prices were "here to stay", though he forecast a fall after the summer.
"After the summer season you are going to see prices subside," he said, adding that if the winter is warm, that would contribute to a decline in prices. "High prices are here with us to stay for a while. I don't see that impacting the economies in terms of growth, in terms of inflation," he said. He said most major economies, except China and India, had adjusted to high oil prices already through better energy efficiency.
Khelil blamed high prices on a lack of refining capacity, which led to fewer stocks of petroleum products at a time of high summer demand in the United States. "The only solution is to see more refineries being built," he said, adding the problem of insufficient refining would "remain with us for another few years".
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