Fereydoun Berkeshli, based in Vienna, told PIN here that oil market heavily depends on OPEC decisions now. “That is unprecedented in the past two decades,” he said ahead of the OPEC March 16 conference. “The main reason for this issue results from the fact that all OPEC members are working to keep the market stable,” he said. Berkeshli said: “This is the first time I see OPEC so serious in its decisions. The cartel is determined to save its face in the world and it has so far been successful. In the past, OPEC decisions were overshadowed by the industrialized nations but now OPEC is too effective.” Regarding the role the producers and the consumers can play in the oil market, he said: “OPEC reserves are ending and it can no more produce oil. The Middle East is capable enough of meeting oil demand but the industrialized nations have been indifferent.” “Upstream oil companies are reluctant to invest in Iraq and they face restrictions as far as Iran, Algeria, Libya and Nigeria are concerned. These countries have failed to develop their oil industries.”