[Fair Use: For Education and Research Only]

Iranian Says No Oil Deal Made Yet

Story Filed: Sunday, March 12, 2000 8:40 AM EST

MUSCAT, Oman (AP) -- Iran's oil minister said Sunday that no agreement has been reached about raising OPEC oil production, and that the cartel will decide on the issue when it meets in Vienna later this month.

Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said upon arrival in Oman that the decision on raising output cannot be made by any individual country but will have to be made by the 11-member Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

``Until now, no decision has been made about whether or not to increase production levels,'' he said.

Zanganeh has been visiting oil producers ahead of the March 27 OPEC meeting. He was in Saudi Arabia last week, and is due to arrive in the United Arab Emirates later Sunday.

Following a brief meeting with his Omani counterpart, Mohammed al-Rumhi, Zanganeh said his talks are mainly aimed at coordinating positions and exchanging views ahead of the forthcoming OPEC meeting.

He said that Iran's current position is that it supports an extension of the ongoing OPEC production cut, which expires at the end of the month.

In agreements signed in 1998 and 1999, non-OPEC Oman joined OPEC and non-OPEC producers in removing about 5 million barrels a day from the market through March 31, 2000, to boost oil prices.

Copyright ) 2000 Associated Press Information Services, all rights reserved.

http://library.northernlight.com/EA20000312610000036.html?cb=200&dx=2006&sc=1#doc

-- (Dee360Degree@aol.com), March 12, 2000