Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, said on Monday it favours an oil price of $100 per barrel, identifying an ideal crude price for the first time in more than three years.
In an interview with CNN, the kingdom's oil minister, Ali al-Naimi, also said Saudi could raise production to full capacity of 12.5 million barrels daily within 90 days.
“Our wish and hope is we can stabilise this oil price and keep it at a level around $100,” Naimi told CNN in an interview.
International benchmark Brent crude was valued at just over $111 a barrel on Monday. US crude traded at $99.50 a barrel.
The Saudi oil chief said Riyadh could increase production by about 2 million barrels per day (bpd) “almost immediately”.
Saudi Arabia is the only oil producer with any significant spare capacity to replace any fall in supply from its regional rival Iran, which is under increasing pressure from the United States and Europe over its nuclear programme.
“We can easily get up to 11.4, 11.8 (million barrels a day) almost immediately, in a few days,” Naimi told CNN - up from just under 10 million bpd now.
But “to get to the next (700,000 barrels a day) or so, we probably need about 90 days”, he said.
Iranian oil supplies to Europe are set to fall this year when an European Union embargo, due to be agreed next week, is implemented in July.
Tehran on Sunday advised its Gulf Arab neighbours against raising output to make up for any shortfall from Iran.
Iran's representative at the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said any such action by the Gulf countries “will not be perceived as friendly.”
Tehran has threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, the gateway for large volumes of crude from the Gulf, should it face sanctions on its crude.
“I personally do not believe that the Strait, if it were shut, will be shut for any length of time,” said Naimi.
“I don't think all these pronouncements are helpful to the international oil market or to the price of oil. It's really disturbing.”
Riyadh has not specified a preferred oil price since it said it favoured $75 per barrel in November 2008. Oil prices have risen sharply since then and Saudi Arabia's national budgetary requirements are now estimated by bankers at about $90 a barrel. - Reuters