OPEC seeks talks to end dispute on pricing, output

August 3, 1981

Moves are being made within the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to hold an emergency meeting in search of a compromise in the dispute over crude oil prices between moderate Saudi Arabia and hard-line members of the cartel.They want the Saudis -- who produce half of all OPEC oil -- to cut their huge production to remove a surplus from the world market. The Saudis insist they will not do this without price reductions at least by African producers, who charge around $40 a barrel, compared with the Saudi's own $32.