Russia warns on output from high loan rates

Russia warned today oil could soar to $150 a barrel if the global economic crisis continued to curb investment in capacity by top producers.

Moscow’s top energy policy official also warned output from Russia could be hit unless borrowing costs fell for its energy giants and called for a move away from trading oil only in US dollars.

Russia, which is currently producing more oil than Saudi Arabia, has refused to cut production with Opec and wants higher prices for the lifeblood of its $1.7 trillion economy.

“If capital investments do not recover then the recent forecast of the Saudi oil minister, when he said in Rome that oil prices could be $150 (per barrel) in 2-3 years, could become reality,” Reuters quoted Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin as telling the St Petersburg Economic Forum.

“I can tell what we think is needed for us – we need not less than $75,” said Sechin, one of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s most trusted advisers.

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