Iran to raise output by 33% before any oil deal
“They should leave us alone” until then, the country’s oil minister, Bijan Zangeneh, said, according to the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA).
“After that we will work with them.”
Saudi Arabia, Russia, Venezuela, and Qatar proposed an accord to freeze oil output and tackle a global surplus.
Oil extended gains after their meeting on February 16, and has climbed more than 40% since the 12-year low in January.
Oil at $70 a barrel is “suitable,” ISNA cited Zangeneh as saying.
Iran wants to boost output by 1 million barrels a day this year after international sanctions on its oil industry were lifted in January.
Production was 3 million barrels a day in February, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Brent crude closed on Friday at $40.39 a barrel.
Zangeneh will meet with Russian energy minister Alexander Novak today, according to ISNA.
The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-members have intermittently held discussions since November 2014, when OPEC first signalled it was unwilling to cut production on its own to support prices.
Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Russia, and Mexico met in Vienna that month without reaching any deal.
A tour of oil capitals from Moscow to Riyadh last month by Venezuelan energy minister Eulogio Del Pino failed to produce an accord.
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