In an interview with CNBC Arabia on the sidelines of the international symposium of OPEC in Vienna, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek El Molla confirmed that oil prices within the range of $75 per barrel should be reasonable.

“We surely saw how prices rose last year, exceeding $90 per barrel and so on. We are talking today about what we see in the current situation, the price should be within the range of $75 per barrel,” El Molla said. “I think that this is a reasonable price, which means that it achieves a balance for producers and consumers.”

El Molla added that he sees this as a fair price as Egypt is both an oil-producing country and oil-importing country, yet the country’s consumption is presently exceeding its production.

Moreover, the Egyptian minister commented on Egypt’s oil drilling operations. The country is completing exploratory drilling, development and operation of the oil activities. “We are talking about $8 billion. This is the cost of the works in the next year.”