Oil at $50 will help economy, hinder investment: UAE

DUBAI (Reuters) – An oil price of $50 a barrel may help the global economy recover faster, the UAE oil minister said, but could deter investment in capacity among non-OPEC producers according to International Energy Agency estimates.

“$50 will hopefully help the economy to recover more quickly,” United Arab Emirates Oil Minister Mohamed al-Hamli told reporters on the sidelines of an energy conference in Dubai.

Hamli said the UAE, an OPEC member and the world’s fifth-largest oil exporter, would go ahead with capacity expansion projects but that the decline in oil prices placed the burden on producers to invest in anticipation of future demand.

“A new round of heavy investment is required if we are to avoid another cycle of high oil prices,” he said.

“Such investment represents a major burden for resource-holders, all of which have their own development agenda and competing calls for funds.”

Reuters