国际英语新闻：Int'l oil investment shrinks 20% amid financial crisis: OAPEC

CAIRO, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) -- Oil ministers of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) said Saturday that international investment in petroleum has shrank 20 percent due to the global financial crisis.

They made the remarks at the 83rd OAPEC ministerial meeting, during which a chorus of satisfaction over the current oil prices and production quota, set one year ago by Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Oran, Algeria, was heard.

    "The international companies have reduced their investments by 20 percent in 2009, compared to 2008, especially in the area of research and exploration," said Egyptian Minister of Petroleum Sameh Fahmi.

Arab oil ministers and senior officials take a group photo before attending a ministerial conference of the Organisation of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) in Cairo, capital of Egypt, on Dec. 5, 2009.

    Fahmi, who chaired the meeting, said the ministers discussed the methods of enhancing cooperation between OAPEC members and improving the companies working under the organization to face the global downturn challenges.

    "Everything is so good... The price is perfect and all investors, consumers, producers are very happy," said Saudi Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali al-N'aimi, whose country is the world's top oil exporter.

    Syrian Minister of Oil and Mineral Resources Sufian Allaw said, "If these prices remain stable for a period of time, this will restore confidence and re-employ new investments to meet the naturally growing demands."

    Last year, in response to a slump of oil prices from a record high of 147 U.S. dollars to some 35 dollars at the height of the financial crisis, the OPEC made a whopping cut of 4.2-million barrels per day from September to December.

    The participants asserted that the low oil prices discourage the countries investing in the oil sector, causing suspension and delay of considerable investment projects in the field.

    "The price must vary from 70 to 80 U.S. dollars to be profitable for investment. But if it is 40 dollars, it will be useless for investment, which leads to suspending and delaying the projects," said Bahrain's Oil Minister Al-Hussain bin Ali Mirza.

    The participants also welcomed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s forecast that oil will remain the dominant source of energy for several decades, and that the international demand for oil will increase from 85 million to 105 million barrels a day within the next 20 years.

    Established in 1968, the OAPEC is a multi-governmental organization headquartered in Kuwait which coordinates energy policies in Arab nations. Seven countries of the bloc are also the members of OPEC.