VIENNA, September 20 (RIA Novosti, Taras Lariokhin) - Russia shares global concerns about unpredictable increases in oil prices, a deputy minister said Monday.
Deputy Industry and Energy Minister Andrei Reus told the 137th Conference of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries: "We understand that the benefits of high oil prices today might lead to a sharp drop in demand tomorrow, and ultimately to falling profits for oil producing countries."
According to Reus, Russia produced three times more oil than OPEC countries between 2000 and 2004.
"By increasing oil production, Russia contributed to compensating for losses from the fall in oil production in the North Sea, the United States and other regions," deputy minister said. "And today, Russia remains a stabilizing factor on the global oil market."
Reus also said Russia was planning to increase oil production in 2005 from 459 million metric tons to 470 million tons, and was preparing for future growth.
