Iran OPEC Gov: High Oil Price Unsustainable, Could Hit $100/Bbl

TEHRAN -(Dow Jones)- Iran would benefit from rising international crude oil prices that could even hit $100 a barrel, but high oil prices aren’t sustainable in the long run, said Iran’s Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries governor, Hussein Kazempour Ardebili, in remarks aired by state radio Thursday.

Asked about the factors causing soaring oil prices, Kazempour named geopolitical instability in top oil producing nations, particularly those in the Middle East, attacks on Mexican fuel pipelines by an anti-government rebel group last week and the turmoil in the U.S. financial markets.


“All of these are reasons for the rise in oil price. (However,) this situation is unsustainable and cannot last,” he said.

Kazempour was asked if the oil price could hit $100 a barrel: “There is every possibility,” he said.

He said an unexpected cold winter as well as political instability in top OPEC producers could push prices well above the current level.

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