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 "The price of oil is at a low level ... I don't think it will last
in the long term ... The pressure on oil-producing nations means
balance will be restored in the short term," Rouhani, whose country
is the third-largest producer in OPEC, said at the French Institute
of International Relations.
Pragmatist Rouhani arrived in France on Wednesday on the second leg
of a state visit to Europe after three days in Italy. Iran is
pushing to boost oil exports now that international sanctions
against it have been lifted.
Reiterating Iran's official stance, Rouhani blamed Shi'ite Iran's
Sunni regional rival Saudi Arabia for the drop in oil prices, which
have halved since last May as global supply outstrips demand.
Oil futures surged on Wednesday after non-OPEC member Russia
indicated there was a possibility of cooperation with the
Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to curb output and
thus raise the crude price, currently near $33 a barrel.
Nikolai Tokarev, head of Russia's oil pipeline monopoly Transneft,
said on Wednesday Russian officials had decided they should talk to
Saudi Arabia and other OPEC countries about output cuts aimed at
bolstering crude prices.
But Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said Tehran had not been
contacted by Moscow over oil output cuts.
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"I have not received anything," Zanganeh said at a Franco-Iranian
summit in Paris, adding that Iran would sign an agreement with
French oil major Total.
"We will sign an agreement with Total (this) afternoon," he said,
without elaborating. Total declined to comment.
(Reporting by John Irish and Bate Felix in Paris; Writing by Parisa
Hafezi; Editing by Dale Hudson and Jason Neely)
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