NIOC Deputy Director of International Affairs Mohammad-Ali Khatibi said that the price will rise if the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) permits the consumer countries to use their oil resources.

The International Energy Agency"s (IEA) recent studies on oil supply and demand have reversed most of its 2007 forecasts.

The IEA in its early 2007 estimates predicted that the non-OPEC countries will increase their supply by two million barrels in the current year, said the official, adding the agency"s reports are contrary to the idea.

The average oil production of the non-OPEC countries in 2006 was 55.4 million barrels which slipped to 55.3 million barrels in 2007, he added in a Mehr report.