OPEC oil producers do not need to increase production as the factors pushing oil prices to near-record highs are not related to the cartel, Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez said today.
He also told reporters on his arrival in India that his country, the world's fifth-largest producer, would not cut off oil supplies to the United States, its biggest export market, unless the US government "got crazy" and showed any aggression.
Asked whether OPEC needed to raise output, Mr Chavez said: "No, we are producing enough." "The increase in prices has nothing to do with OPEC. It's the structure of the market. We are evaluating the factors in the market," he told reporters in New Delhi.
"Venezuela is producing more than 3 million barrels per day," he said.
OPEC meets in Iran on March 16th to discuss second-quarter production policy.
Nigeria's top oil official said yesterday that OPEC would focus on whether or not to raise production at the meeting.
Oil prices have surged over the last three weeks due to a late cold spell in Europe and the United States and worries over possible supply hiccups.
The rally has attracted speculators into the market, helping to push prices higher. US light crude touched $55.20 a barrel yesterday, just off last October's record at $55.67.