Oil-rich nations to hold informal talks in Istanbul

Oil ministers plan to meet in Istanbul to discuss how to implement September’s decision to curb crude output. Ways to include non-OPEC producers in the cuts will be on the agenda at the talks from October 9-13, Venezuela’s Oil Minister, Eulogio Del Pino, said in a government statement on Wednesday. The UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Algeria and Gabon will be represented at the gathering – the 23rd World Energy Congress – as will non-OPEC member Russia, he said. OPEC, or the Organization of the Petroleum-exporting Countries, is ironing out the fine print of the pact, announced in Algiers, to reduce oil output to 33 million barrels a day. Iran, which is emerging from international sanctions, is exempted from production cuts, while Nigeria has said it won’t comply and Libya’s oil output is far lower than usual.