Oil Price at $60-80 Per Barrel Optimal to Maintain Investment - Ex-IEA Head

The oil price at the level of $60-80 per barrel is optimal to maintain investment and efficiency of the oil industry, former head of the International Energy Agency Nobuo Tanaka told Sputnik Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Tanaka noted that 2020 year was a target when this adjustment might happen.

"As discussion goes, in the longer term, the price level of 60-80$ is what we have to see to maintain the investment, at the same time keeping efficiency there," he said on the sidelines of the the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

"The current level [of oil price] is supposedly too low. It is coming up now…. If the price went too high, it creates problem, if it is too low, it is another problem. So the answer is always in the middle," Tanaka said.

He also stressed that a lot depends on the volatility of the situation.

"Volatility gives very much difficulty of the investment. If you don't know what happens in future, it is awkward to make investment," Tanaka highlighted.

Oil prices have plunged over the past two years from $115 per barrel in June 2014 to less than $30 per barrel in January 2016. The price drop has been attributed to slowed global economic growth, decreasing energy demand and major producers flooding the market with oil.

The 2016 St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) is taking place on June 16-18. The agenda for SPIEF 2016, which is held at a new venue for the first time in 20 years — at the ExpoForum Convention and Exhibition Centre — includes business forums of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, BRICS, and the Business 20.

According to the organizing committee, the number of contracts at SPIEF is expected to be not less than in 2015 when the total volume of agreements reached 293 billion rubles ($4.4 billion). Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov said on Tuesday that the number of SPIEF participants would exceed 10,000 this year, compared to 7,500 in 2015.