Free Republic

Iran’s oil minister says the Islamic republic, Russia and Qatar discussed the formation of an OPEC-style cartel of gas exporting countries. Iranian Oil Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari says that the top three countries with natural gas reserves will “seriously pursue the formation of an organization of gas exporting countries.” Nozari spoke on state TV today after a joint meeting with his Qatari counterpart Abdulla Bin Hamad al-Attiya and the head of Russia’s Gazprom Alexei Miller.

For years, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has exasperated Western governments by acting as a cartel to control oil production. Now, the West may have a new foe: Gas OPEC. Yesterday, Russia, Iran and Qatar, the world's three leading natural gas producers, said that they were forming a "big gas troika" that could become a permanent body. It's not clear what role the group will have; Alexei Miller, chief executive officer of Russian gas monopoly Gazprom, said the body would meet up to four times a year to discuss pricing issues. However, Iranian Oil Minister Gholamhossein Nozari said he...