Russia Unlikely to Join OPEC

TEHRAN (FNA)- The vice chairman of Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom said his country could not limit its output under OPEC-style quotas.

“The mechanism of OPEC couldn’t be applicable straight-forwardly to the Russian Federation,” AFP quoted Alexander Medvedev as saying in a press conference in Paris on Friday.

“We are in contact with OPEC to exchange information,” he added, saying this was “a good signal for the market because…It gives support (to prices).”

He said Russia could introduce measures to stabilize the country’s production but “not in compliance with the OPEC mechanism” and “based on the specifics of our production.”

OPEC’s 13 members abide by a quota system, which allocates output targets to each of them to stabilize prices in the oil markets.

The comments by the Gazprom official come as Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev declared on Thursday that his country was ready to support OPEC efforts to stem the plunge in crude prices.