Summary
Iran said Wednesday it would resist any plan to restrain its oil output as fellow OPEC ministers flew to Tehran to try to persuade the country to join the first global oil pact in 15 years. The talks in Tehran follow a deal reached Tuesday by dominant OPEC power Saudi Arabia and non-OPEC Russia, the world's top two producers and exporters, to freeze production at January levels if other big oil nations also agree to join.
Iran is the major obstacle to the first joint OPEC and non-OPEC deal since 2001, as it has pledged to steeply increase output in the coming months, seeking to regain market share lost after years of international sanctions.
The freeze plan has so far failed to push up oil prices, due to concerns Iran would not participate and that a deal would do little to ease the global glut as it would still allow Russia and Saudi Arabia to keep pumping at near record levels.
Two non-Iranian sources close to the OPEC discussions told Reuters Tuesday that Iran might be offered special terms as part of an output freeze deal.
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