UAE energy forum expects oil price to rebound

The price of oil is expected to rebound from the current 45 US dollars per barrel to 70 or 80 dollars during 2015, Chinese expert told the 6th Gulf Intelligence UAE Energy Forum here on Tuesday.

Oil price hit a six-year low on Tuesday at 45.87 dollars a barrel after a session low at 45.19 dollars, said Xu Xiaojie, divisional head of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, in an exclusive interview with Xinhua on Tuesday.

"We expect the price of oil to pick up because after the winter, demand for oil will recover. We also think that oil producers will step in to lift prices as production costs become too high if oil prices remain at a five-year low," Xu said on the sidelines of the 6th annual Gulf Intelligence United Arab Emirates (UAE) Energy Forum held in Abu Dhabi.

"China has worked out a 5-year plan to increase the share of renewable energy across all industry sectors and we will stick to it, regardless of fluctuations in oil prices," said Xu.

The 6th Gulf Intelligence UAE Energy Forum was organized by the research firm Gulf Intelligence on January 13.