By the OGJ Online Staff
HOUSTON, May 15 -- Trading was mixed Monday on international energy futures markets as members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries analyzed oil prices prior to their next ministerial conference June 5 in Vienna.
"We need to observe what is going to happen during what is left of May in order to make a decision (on OPEC production)," said Alvaro Silva Calderon, Venezuela's minister of energy and mines.
"We have the perception that prices are stabilized on the lower end (of OPEC's target band of $22-$28/bbl) and that they are at seasonal levels at this time, which, compared with other years, are not intense," Silva Calderon told reporters in Caracas on Monday.
He said, "We believe the (production) cut at OPEC's last meeting halted" a potential drop in world oil prices.
The June contract for benchmark US light, sweet crudes gained 16¢ to $28.71/bbl Monday on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while the July contract rose 5¢ to $29.13/bbl. Both contracts continued to rise in after-hours electronic trading to $28.84/bbl and $29.24/bbl respectively.
But unleaded gasoline for June delivery fell 4.03¢ to $1.0098/gal on the NYMEX. Home heating oil for the same month retreated 0.8¢ to 75.25¢/gal. The natural gas contract for June increased by 11.6¢ to $4.27/Mcf.
In London, the June contract for North Sea Brent crude moved up 8¢ to $28.28/bbl on the International Petroleum Exchange, while the July contract added 4¢ to $28.36/bbl. The June natural gas contract lost 4¢ to the equivalent of $3.06/Mcf on the IPE.
The average price for OPEC's basket of seven crudes lost 11¢ to $25.88/bbl on Monday.
Silva Calderon said the average price that Venezuela receives for its oil is $21.90/bbl "at the moment," with a slightly lower average of $21.83/bbl thus far for 2001.
"That indicates that we are within (Venezuela's) budget estimates that were calculated around $20/bbl," he said.
In other action Monday, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez signed a cooperation agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Putin said the two countries have "common views on oil prices, because consumers as well as producers should have affordable prices."
The agreement came at the start of Chavez's 4-day visit to Russia for the purpose of building stronger relations with that country. It's the first leg of a 3-week tour that will take Chavez to Iran, India, China, Malaysia, Bangladesh, and Indonesia.
Meanwhile, Chakib Khelil, Algeria's minister of energy and mines, is planning a visit soon to Iraq to discuss bilateral cooperation to develop oil reserves in Iraq.
Earlier this year, officials of the two countries announced that some projects had been identified that Sonatrach, the Algerian state oil and gas company could undertake in Iraq.
Those potential projects involved exploration of two blocks and development of Iraq's Tuba oil field.