Iran does not see any benefit to freezing oil production while other OPEC members are producing at a high level, Mohammad Sadegh Joukar, an energy expert at the Iranian Energy Ministry, told Sputnik Persian.

On Tuesday OPEC Secretary-General Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo told RIA Novosti that his organization is working on�a one-year agreement among�the world's top oil producers to�freeze oil production and support the price.

"One year, we are looking at�one year," Barkindo replied, when asked about�a possible agreement between�OPEC and non-OPEC producers at�the International Energy Forum which takes place in�Algiers next week. Algerian Energy Minister Noureddine Bouterfa said that the cartel's producers are pumping more than�33 million barrels per day, and need to�agree on�cutting oil production to�curb the global oil glut. "The question is at�what level we would freeze or reduce output � we need to�find a good compromise in�order not to�destabilize the market." "It's necessary to�reduce (production) by�at least 1 million barrels a day to�re-balance the market. Will we get there? We are working for�that," Bouterfa said.

On Thursday futures contracts for�Brent Crude were trading at $47.60 according to�Bloomberg data, an increase of�3.7 percent since�Tuesday, amid�expectations of�a possible agreement to�cut production.

In January partial sanctions against�Iran were lifted in�connection with�the nuclear deal Tehran agreed with�the P5+1 group of�countries in�July last year. Consequently, Iran announced its intention to�increase its oil output to�pre-sanctions levels of�more than�four million barrels per day; it currently produces just over�3.8 million barrels per day. However, Mohammad Sadegh Joukar, an energy expert at�the Iranian Energy Ministry's Organization for�the Study of�International Energy Problems, told Sputnik Persian that Iran does not see any benefits in�agreeing a deal to�freeze production, when other countries such as�Saudi Arabia are producing record amounts. On Monday Saudi Arabia revealed that the kingdom produced a record high 10.673 million barrels per day in�July, followed by�10.63 million barrels per day in�August. "This project to�freeze oil output from�OPEC members and other producers will hardly have a positive effect on�the price. It is necessary to�cut the volume of�production, not freeze it," Joukar said.

"Some producers, OPEC members, think that freezing production automatically means keeping the current status of�output, when Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries are producing oil at�the maximum rate.

"That kind of�position is inappropriate and undesirable for�Iran, whose key task is to�increase its output. So, Saudi Arabia is currently at�maximum output and it asking other OPEC members to�agree to�a production freeze. As we can see from�documents about�the oil production capacity of�Arab countries OPEC members, these countries are also producing oil at�maximum capacity and their plans are far from�being short-term," Joukar said. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on�Wednesday that Russia is also ready to�discuss a possible cut in�production at�the meeting in�Algiers, but�it should be balanced with�the medium-term impact on�the industry. "The situation is quite complicated, the market is not balanced and across�the world, large investment flows are leaving the industry which could risk an oil deficit in�the medium term," Novak warned.

By Sputnik