OSAKA -- The ideal price for oil is just over $20 a barrel, or $8 less than the current price, the European Union's commissioner of energy and transport said Monday, indicating an EU plan to stockpile oil is in response to unforeseen emergencies.
In an interview with The Japan Times, Loyola de Palacio, who represented the EU at the Eighth International Energy Forum in Osaka that concluded Monday, said nuclear power and alternate energy sources such as wind and solar power will play an important part in the future energy mix of the EU, and that nuclear power in particular is necessary to meet Kyoto Protocol commitments.
While OPEC has set the desired range of oil prices at $22 to $28 per barrel, uncertainty over a possible U.S. attack on Iraq has led to oil jumping from $18 a barrel to nearly $30 a barrel nearly two weeks ago. The price of oil eased back under $28 a barrel after Iraq agreed to allow United Nations weapons inspectors back into the country.