VIENNA, 15 September 2004 — Several OPEC members yesterday argued that the organization should raise its price band, but ministers remained deadset against hiking its official production quotas in a bid to stabilize the oil market.

The energy ministers of the United Arab Emirates, Libya and Nigeria all spoke in favor of adjusting the price band of $22 to $28 per barrel to bring it closer to the real price, which rose to $44 yesterday.

Arriving in Vienna ahead of a ministerial meeting of the organization today, United Arab Emirates Oil Minister Obeid bin Saif Al-Nassiri told reporters: “It is necessary to be changed.”

Libyan Oil Minister Fathi Hamed Ben Shatwan agreed with Nasseri that the time had come to adjust the price band.

“We would like to raise the band. So we would like to discuss it.”

Nassiri pointed out that there “was no agreement yet” between member states on where the band should be set, while Nigeria’s top oil officials said the west African state would be happy if the top end of the band fell anywhere between $30-$40.

“They should raise the ceiling of the price band, I agree entirely. Anywhere between 30 and 40 (dollars a barrel) should be good enough,” Edward Daukoro, the oil adviser to Nigerian president said.

The more powerful OPEC members however preached caution on the matter, with Venezuela and Saudi Arabia saying while they were ready to discuss it today, the time was not ripe for a decision.

“It’s the time to continue discussing about that. At the moment, the market does not have the long-term price signal,” Venezuela’s Rafeal Ramirez said.

Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali Al-Naimi yesterday deplored high oil prices, but hinted there was little more the organization could do to end turmoil in the market that saw prices push close to $50 a barrel late last month. “The fundamentals do not support this price and OPEC does not want this price,” Al-Naimi told reporters.

“OPEC is doing its part, but OPEC is not the only player in town and people want to make money,” the minister told reporters yesterday.

“They know there is no better way to make it than do what they are doing in the market. There is not much we can do. It is very legitimate, people want to make money,” he said. Faced with record prices, the cartel in June decided to increase its output by a million barrels per day over the next two months, and sources say it went well beyond that to pump 29.75 million bpd by the end of August.

Al-Naimi said OPEC felt the market was driven more by fear than fundamentals as OPEC was producing enough oil to meet demand and had the capacity to pump out more if needed.

“We will always be ahead of demand,” the minister said, while adding: “We don’t see any shortage in the market... I know there is enough oil to meet projections of demand.”

Saudi Arabia would continue to pump 9.5 million bpd as long as there were orders, and it had the capacity to produce an extra one million, possibly more, if necessary, the minister said.

Asked if OPEC would officially raise its quota ceiling on production of 26 million bpd to match output, Al-Naimi indicated there was little point.

“The market knows there is production more than the ceiling by the 10 countries,” he said. Iraq is not included in the quota system.

World oil prices streaked higher again yesterday as traders grew increasingly anxious about disruptions to supplies from the Gulf of Mexico from Hurricane Ivan.

In Iraq, a pipeline attack halted exports through the north of the country, a local oil official said.

The price of benchmark Brent North Sea crude oil for delivery in October climbed 81 cents to $41.87 a barrel in late afternoon deals in London.

New York’s reference contract, light sweet crude for delivery in October, rose 53 cents to $44.40 a barrel in early deals.