OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo received Azerbaijani Minister of Energy Natig Aliyev and Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Permanent Mission to the International Organizations in Vienna Galib Israfilov.
Non-OPEC countries were invited to join in talks following the Algiers Accord, reached in Algeria on September 28.
Natig Aliyev said that Azerbaijan was very interested in closer contact with OPEC, adding he wanted to increase his knowledge of OPEC’s efforts to stabilize the oil market and find out which role non-OPEC countries could play, including Azerbaijan.
He said OPEC and non-OPEC countries shared the same challenges and should seek common solutions, adding that Azerbaijan depended financially on the oil and gas industry. The development of a roadmap was an important next step for Azerbaijan, he said.
“Venezuela and Azerbaijan agree that some measures will be taken to stabilize the market. We agreed the price of oil could be around $60 per barrel”, Natig Aliyev reported.
One mandate of the Algiers Accord was to work out a framework for permanent cooperation, Mohammad Barkindo said at the meeting with Natig Aliyev, which could include dialogue and joint actions.
“The evolving relationship between OPEC and non-OPEC needs to be upgraded within a permanent framework in a structured and timely fashion as mandated by the Algiers Accord”, he added.
Six non-OPEC countries participated in the technical meeting on October 29, including Azerbaijan, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Oman and Russia. (Trend/Business World Magazine)