OPEC looked set to maintain its production policies on Friday and take no steps to curb supply going into 2016 when members Iran and Iraq will boost exports, potentially worsening one of the worst oil gluts in history. Benchmark Brent oil futures LCOc1 are below $45 per barrel, just a few dollars off their 6-year lows, and OPEC's own basket of crude grades is below $38 per barrel - a fraction of what most OPEC members need to balance their budget. OPEC's poorer members have been piling pressure on OPEC's wealthier members led by Saudi Arabia to curb supply. But Riyadh and its allies appeared on Friday to be ready to stick to their strategy of defending market share, hoping that lower prices would ultimately drive higher cost producers out of the market. The Saudis have previously said they would be prepared to consider a cut if OPEC members Iraq and Iran agreed to cooperate and non-OPEC members joined. "We have said on more than one occasion, we are willing to cooperate with anyone who can balance the market," Naimi said. But Moscow repeated this week it saw no chance of joint actions and Iran and Iraq on Friday showed no willingness to curb supply either. Iranian oil minister Bijan Zangeneh said Tehran would be prepared to discuss OPEC quotas or other action only when his country reached pre-sanction oil output levels when and if Western sanctions on the country are lifted next year. He said he expected OPEC to roll over production policies on Friday. Saudi Arabian oil minister Ali al-Naimi said on Friday that growing global demand could absorb an expected jump in Iranian production next year. Iraqi oil minister Adel Abdel Mahdi said his country would further raise output next year after having steeply increased production in 2015, and added that rival OPEC member Iran also had the right to increase output after sanctions are lifted. http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/172562.aspx
