Qatar: Price of oil would drop $15 if politicians shut up


Thursday, April 27, 2006

ABU DHABI — Qatar plans to invest $5 billion through 2010 in an attempt to increase the production of crude oil.

Qatari Energy Minister Abdullah Bin Hamad Al Attiyah said the price of oil would drop by $15 should politicians end their expressions of concern over a halt in supplies.

Al Attiyah said the record oil prices of more than $75 per barrel was the result of fears and speculation within the market.

Qatar intends to allocate $5 billion over the next five years to boost oil production capacity to 1.1 million barrels per day.

Current production was reported at 850,000 barrels per day.

"We are putting a lot of effort and investment into increasing our oil output," Al Attiyah said on the sidelines of the International Energy Forum in Doha on April 23.