He said, "if the OPEC benchmark oil price fell from $36 to $28 per barrel, this would be a signal that the cartel might have been too hasty in regard to the decision on increase in output [and exports] of oil."
Nigeria doubts the reasonability of the decision, and so do Iran and Kuwait (also OPEC member states), because in the last days crude oil prices, not only for OPEC benchmark, but also for Brent and West Texas Intermediate, have fallen sharply. The International Petroleum Exchange (IPE) in London traded the North Sea Brent oil for $35.67 per barrel, down $0.73 from the previous session, and the New York Mercantile Exchange traded futures for WTI oil at $38.49 per barrel, down $0.79 from the previous session.
While Nigeria's crude oil production and export quota in the cartel is 1.936 million bpd, it actually produces 2.25 million bpd. "Nigeria can increase its oil production by 300,000 bpd more," Daukoru said.
Anyway, the Nigerian representative airs the opinion of only one OPEC member state. All decisions in the cartel, and the latest one taken at the Beirut conference was no exclusion, are adopted unanimously by all 10 member states. The eleventh member, Iraq, is rated separately and allowed to export as much petroleum as possible. Currently Iraq produces about 2.5 million bpd and exports a little less than 2 million bpd. It is also common knowledge that the Saudi Arabia which accounts for a third of all cartel's export of crude oil often dominates the position of the entire cartel.
Riyadh was behind the latest decision to raise OPEC aggregate output and exports first up to 25.5 million bpd, and from August up to 26 million bpd, and Saudi Arabian representatives have made it clear that Riyadh can go even further as to replenish the deficit should such a problem appear.
