April 20 (Bloomberg) -- The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries doesn't need to raise oil production and any increase will not affect prices, officials including the group's president, Chakib Khelil, said.

``Any increase in production now will not have an impact on prices because there is a balance between supply and demand,'' Khelil said during a visit to the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Kuwait's state news agency reported today. ``We in OPEC raised production last year and prices remained high. If we increase production we will not find people to buy the increment.''

Crude oil futures have doubled in three years, touching a record $116.97 a barrel on April 18 in New York. High prices are caused by an economic crisis in the U.S. and the decline of the value of the U.S. dollar, he said. OPEC Secretary-General Abdalla el-Badri also blamed the weak dollar and commodity speculators for high prices.

``As long as these factors keep contributing to the market, we may see higher prices,'' OPEC's el-Badri told reporters today in Rome, where he is attending the three-day International Energy Forum, a biennial meeting of officials from energy producing and consuming countries.

``OPEC will not hesitate to increase oil production if there's a shortage of oil, but there's no shortage of oil in the market,'' the secretary-general said in Rome. ``If we add more oil to the market, I am sure it will not solve the problem.'' Oil consumption in some parts of the world, including the U.S., may be affected by high prices, though Asian demand won't be, he said.

Rebuffed Requests

OPEC officials including Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al- Naimi have rebuffed previous requests from U.S. and European politicians for more oil, saying supply is sufficient. Pressure from consumers to raise output is ``probably politically driven,'' oil newsletter Argus reported yesterday, citing al-Naimi.

Record oil prices are accelerating inflation and help is needed from producers to lower the cost of oil, a Japanese Trade Ministry official said before a scheduled meeting with al-Naimi.

``We would like to discuss the oil price, it is very high,'' Shin Hosaka, director of the oil and gas division at Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, said in an interview today in Rome. ``We propose to Saudi Arabia to be cooperative on a stable price.''

British Prime Minister

U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown last week urged producing nations to provide more oil to ``respond'' to higher prices, to make sure markets are ``adequately supplied.''

``Oil consuming countries must take action to improve energy efficiency and promote alternative energy uses,'' Brown said in an April 16 speech in London. ``But with the oil price now at $100 a barrel, both oil producing and consuming countries share common interests for the stability of the global oil market.''

Paolo Scaroni, chief executive of Eni SpA, Italy's biggest oil company, also said OPEC should raise production to combat speculation and increases in other commodity prices that are pushing the cost of oil higher.

``Some here have said that if demand becomes stronger, OPEC could increase supply,'' Scaroni told reporters in Rome today. ``I hope this happens. Still, the prevailing wind in the economy allows one to imagine there could be a decline in demand.''

Industry Leaders

Al-Naimi, Scaroni and el-Badri are among more than 40 company chiefs and 90 energy ministers attending the energy forum in Rome, which started today. Industry leaders will discuss investment, resource nationalism and sustainable development as rising energy costs push some consumers, such as airlines, to bankruptcy.

Kuwait's acting Oil Minister Mohammed al-Aleem told reporters in Rome today that OPEC can increase supply ``if there is a need.''

When asked about the possibility of an additional meeting before OPEC's next scheduled policy-setting conference in September, al-Aleem said: ``If there is a need for a meeting, they will meet for sure.''

Customers aren't asking for more crude though, Qatari Oil Minister Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah said as he arrived in Rome yesterday, blaming the plunging dollar for record prices. ``The oil price rises as the dollar gets weaker,'' he said.

Speculation is probably adding about $20 a barrel to today's oil price, Shokri Ghanem, chairman of Libya's National Oil Corp., said in a Bloomberg Television interview late yesterday in Rome.

OPEC pumped 32.35 million barrels of crude a day in March, according to Bloomberg estimates, and kept its production targets unchanged at its last three meetings on March 5, Feb. 1 and Dec. 5.

The producer group has 2 million barrels a day of spare production capacity, mostly in Saudi Arabia, Khelil said. Other members with spare supply are Algeria, Libya, Venezuela and Nigeria, said Khelil, who is also Algeria's oil minister.

``For years we've been saying the era of cheap oil is over,'' Libya's Ghanem said. ``None of us thought it would reach $115 a barrel so quickly, so it could reach $120'' this week, he said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Fred Pals in Rome at fpals@bloomberg.netAyesha Daya in Rome at adaya1@bloomberg.netFiona MacDonald in Kuwait FmacDonald4@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: April 20, 2008 12:57 EDT