Adipec 2016: Global oil glut almost gone, says UAE energy minister Mazroui

abu dhabi - Industry leaders at Adipec say the international oil market has hit bottom

The UAE's Energy Minister Suhail bin Mohammed Faraj Al Mazroui on Monday said the global oil supply glut was almost gone.

Addressing the 19th Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (Adipec) in Abu Dhabi, Al Mazroui insisted the oil prices would begin to rise again, though he acknowledged it "has been a bit long." "The glut is almost gone ... I think we are at the bottom of this cycle..."

Industry leaders at the conference said the international oil market has hit bottom, though how long it will stay there remains in question. They said oil producers would love to see higher prices, but the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) so far has been unable to cut output.

"What concerns you and us [is] that we need to continue investing in this industry... to ensure we don't see a huge spike three to four years from now," Al Mazroui said.

"We are not greedy," he said. "We need some sort of stability in the price level."

Oman's Minister of Oil and Gas Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhi said "common sense has prevailed slowly in Opec." However, he warned that all were "living in a dangerous place" with some countries' assumptions and production increases.

"We are playing with fire here," he said. "Economies can be destroyed."  "We're in the bottom," he added. "What we don't know is how long that bottom is going to last."

Russia on board
The Opec secretary-general, Mohammed Barkindo, said consultations between Opec and non-Opec producers would continue in coming days and weeks, and he believed it was vital that producers in both camps came together.

"Coordination between members of oil-exporting group Opec and non-member producers is vital to rebalance the market," Barkindo said.

Opec pledged after a meeting in Algiers on September 29 to cut production for the first time in eight years on the back of a sustained depression in global prices.

"The agreement underlined the organisation's commitment to sustainability of oil markets," Barkindo said.

Speaking on the sidelines of the forum, Barkindo said major non-Opec exporter Russia is "on board" with the group's agreement to limit production, according to Bloomberg. - Agencies