Iranian President(L)meets with OPEC President, Kuwaiti Oil Minister Sheikh Ahmad Fahd al-Sabah prior to a closed-door OPEC ministers' session on Mar. 16, 2005.(Xinhua)

    ISFAHAN, Iran, March 16 (Xinhuanet) -- Ministers of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) agreed here Wednesday on an immediate increase of the cartel's output quota by 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 27.5 million bpd, a minister said.

    The cartel was possibly to adopt an additional increase of 500,000 bpd in May if oil prices continued rising, Libyan Energy Secretary Fathi Omar bin Shatwan told reporters.

    "The second increase will depend on the price, and the president of the OPEC will make decision on it, maybe in May," Shatwan said.

    Earlier Wednesday, the ministers started a closed-door session to discuss Saudi Arabia's proposal of raising production quotas by 500,000 bpd.

    Delegates from 11 members of the cartel, including Iran, Algeria, Indonesia, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Libya, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Venezuela and Nigeria, and some non-OPEC countries, including Oman, Angola, Mexico and Syria, were present at the key conference.

    The meeting opened as soaring prices raised global concerns overoil supply. Futures prices reached 55.65 US dollars a barrel in New York last week and lingered around 55 dollars a barrel thereafter. Enditem