Russian oil head says oil demand to grow

Igor Sechin, head of Russia's state oil firm Rosneft, Wednesday noted that the demand for oil and oil products will be growing.

Sechin, Chairman of Rosneft Management Board, Wednesday gave a keynote speech at the International Petroleum Week conference in London.

"More diversified growth seems more resilient, and confirms that many of the mentioned 'threats' of reducing the role of oil in the world economy are largely exaggerated," Sechin said.

According to the head of Rosneft, "an imbalance between oil supply and demand may significantly reduce already by the end of 2016, and by the end of 2017 even lack of oil supply is possible at the market."

Sechin noted that coordinated reduction of supplies made by major exporters in the volume of about 1 mmbpd (million barrels per day) would sharply reduce the uncertainty and move the market towards reasonable price levels.

However, key market players are not ready for such a scenario. According to him, an interaction mechanism should be created between the producers and consumers for stabilization of the situation.

"The market will inevitably stabilize, it has good prospects for further growth, but it depends on its players how quickly and effectively that will happen,"said Sechin.

Speaking of long-term priorities of the global energy sector, Sechin said that "the development of advanced technologies both inside and outside of the industry is an increasingly important trend in the development of the energy sector and the economy in general." Endit