Sept. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose from an 11-week low in London as the United Nations Security Council and Germany prepared to discuss sanctions against Iran because the country refuses to suspend uranium enrichment.

Crude has risen 15 percent in London this year, partly from concern Iran, the world's fourth-largest producer, will cut oil exports if the UN acts against it. The U.S. and Europe fear Iran intends to build nuclear weapons. The Islamic republic says it wants to develop nuclear power plants. UN representatives will meet Sept. 7 in Berlin to discuss the issue.

``The Iran question has been one of the fundamental supports that kept oil above $70 a barrel,'' said Alessandro Di Nunzio, an analyst at Wings Partners in Milan. ``There could be another brusque spike if the situation changes.''

Brent crude oil for October settlement rose as much as 70 cents, or 1 percent, to $68.41 a barrel on the ICE futures Exchange. The contract traded at $68.22 at 2:01 p.m. in London. Oil in New York was $68.40 a barrel, down 79 cents. The New York Mercantile Exchange compared today's price with the closing price on Friday, because of the Labor Day holiday yesterday.

A U.S. military strike against Iran is ``unavoidable'' and probably will happen during George W. Bush's presidency, Israeli lawmaker Jacob Edri told Thueringer Allgemeine, a German newspaper, according to a Deutsche Presse-Agentur report. An attack would be limited to destroying parts of the nuclear program, Edri told the newspaper, according to DPA.

About a fifth of the world's consumption of oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, a 21-mile-wide waterway between Iran and Oman. The U.S. could ``seriously endanger energy flow in the region'' by acting against Iran's nuclear program, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country's supreme leader, said June 4.

Nigeria Disruptions

The price of oil has also been propped up this year by supply disruptions in Nigeria, Africa's largest crude producer, because of militant attacks on pumping facilities and pipelines.

Eni SpA, Europe's fourth-largest oil company, said today it has halted about 50,000 barrels a day of Nigerian output because of pipeline sabotage.

Norsk Hydro ASA, Norway's second-largest oil company, said oil production at its Oseberg South field was closed after a fire occurred in a transformer room at 3 a.m. Oslo time. Production will resume when equipment is checked, the company said. Oseberg South produced an average 71,600 barrels of oil a day last year, according to Hydro's Web site.

Gulf of Mexico

Oil prices also have been boosted by the threat of hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico.

A tropical depression in the central Atlantic Ocean remains ``large but disorganized,'' heading west-northwest, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in a statement at 5 a.m. Miami time. The forecaster earlier said the system, which was centered 1,030 miles (1,660 kilometers) east of the Lesser Antilles, could intensify into Tropical Storm Florence today.

``There has been panic over the hurricane season, which so far has not transpired into anything significant,'' Sean Corrigan, chief investment strategist at Diapason Commodities Management SA, said today in London. ``Having had last year's disaster, of course everybody has traded for the same thing this year.''

The likely path of Florence has moved slightly northward, making it less likely the storm will enter the Gulf of Mexico, the source of a quarter of U.S. oil production. Hurricanes Rita and Katrina devastated the region's oil production last year.

Gasoline for October delivery fell 2.84 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $1.706 a gallon in after-hours trading in New York. The average U.S. price for unleaded gasoline fell to $2.732 per gallon on Sept. 4 from $3.033 the month before, according to the American Automobile Association, the nation's largest driver organization.

To contact the reporter on this story: Eduard Gismatullin in London at egismatullin@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: September 5, 2006 09:23 EDT