(platts) -- OPEC Secretary General Abdalla el-Badri said Wednesday he hoped that the European Union would not agree an oil import embargo on Iran over its controversial nuclear program.
Badri said a threat against any member of the oil producer club could affect oil supply to world markets and that an EU ban on oil imports from OPEC member Iran would remove a large volume of crude that would be difficult to replace.
"We are against threatening any OPEC country because that will effect production and supplies and the market. We want to solve those problems in peaceful ways without any threatening," Badri told reporters on the sidelines of the World Petroleum Congress in Qatar.
"I really hope that there will be no embargo from the EU," Badri said.
"But it is really very difficult to replace this 865,000 b/d that's coming to Europe, and Europe is now facing some difficulties...to cut 865,000 b/d immediately I think would be a problem," he said.