Oil $150 Per Barrel by 2012?

Since last summer's oil price of nearly $150 per barrel, the price has plummeted although now it is somewhere in the range of $60 per barrel.

However, Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali Naimi yesterday predicted that oil prices could approach $150 per barrel in three years time because of recent lack of investment in exploration and production.

Mr. Naimi said at a meeting of the Group of Eight energy ministers, "If others [besides Saudi Arabia] do not begin to invest similarly in new capacity expansion projects, we could see within two-to-three years another price spike similar to or worse than what we witnessed in 2008."

A combination of factors have hurt the investment picture, Mr. Naimi said, including weak demand, low prices, and troubled credit markets, the Financial Times reported ("Saudi Warns of $150 Oil Within Three Years," May 25, 2009).

Meanwhile, today's Financial Times includes an excellent special report on energy.  Anyone interested in the energy sector should read through this report.