Oil prices rise on S. Ossetia war

Press TV
Monday, Aug 11, 2008

The escalating conflict between Georgia and Russia has helped push oil prices to $116 a barrel, rising as much as $1.07 on supply concerns.

New York's main contract, light sweet crude for September delivery, was up $1.06 at $116.26 a barrel in Asian morning trade on Monday.

The contract had settled down $4.82 to $115.20 a barrel on Friday, before falling to $114.90 in post-settlement trade, the lowest level since early May.

London's Brent North Sea crude for September delivery gained $1.07 to $114.40.

Dealers say supply troubles are major concerns. The head of Azerbaijan's state oil company said on Saturday that oil exports had been halted via two Georgian ports due to the military conflict.

That announcement came after Russian warplanes carried out an air strike near the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline, a critical supply line to Western Europe.

Georgia does not produce oil but the country is a key transit point for crude and gas exports from Azerbaijan to markets in the West.

The conflict between the two former Soviet Union members erupted on Thursday when Georgia sent its army into South Ossetia, a small pro-Russian province which threw off Georgian rule in the 1990s.

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