Kuwait says current oil prices 'convenient'

KUWAIT // Current oil prices are "convenient" for both exporters and importers, Kuwait's oil minister told the state news agency on Sunday. "Prices now are at the desired levels of between $60 and $80 per barrel," Sheikh Ahmad al Abdullah al-Sabah was quoted by Kuna. Sheikh Ahmad reiterated that Kuwait aims to reach an oil production capacity of 4 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2020 and sustain it until 2030, adding "unless we do need to increase it," due to the global demand.

The Gulf Arab state pumped 2.25 million bpd in September, according to the latest Reuters survey. Kuwait, the world's fourth-largest oil exporter, has an output capacity of 3 million bpd. Last week, Sheikh Ahmad said he expected OPEC to keep output unchanged when the organization meets in December. OPEC, source of more than a third of the world's oil, agreed to cut supply by 4.2 million barrels per day since September 2008 due to falling demand and prices. It has kept official output targets unchanged at meetings since, most recently on Sept 9.

Compliance with agreed cuts has been slipping in the recent months. OPEC had made 63 percent of promised supply cutbacks in September, down from 68 percent in August, an indication that higher oil prices have prompted some in OPEC to be less disciplined on output targets. The next OPEC meeting is scheduled for Dec 22 in the Angolan capital, Luanda. *Reuters