OPEC oil ministers are gathering in the Algerian city of Oran for an extraordinary ministerial conference which will take place on Wednesday.

The organization could agree on its deepest oil supply cut ever.

Bulging stocks, shrinking demand and a 100 US dollar collapse in oil prices.

For many in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC, up to two million barrels per day must be removed to keep up with the slump in consumption...that has knocked two-thirds off prices since July.

OPEC is also hoping for support from exporters outside the group.

Russia, the biggest non-OPEC exporter, is sending its energy minister to the meeting in Oran.

OPEC President, Algeria's oil minister Chakib Khelil, has commented on possible Russian involvement in any OPEC output decision.

Chakib Khelil, OPEC President, said, "They've expressed their support. We are now hoping for concrete support. We have always hoped they will join OPEC. Russia would give particular weight to OPEC. With Russia on board, OPEC would account for around 50 percent of world oil supply rather than at around 40 percent at present."

The OPEC president noted that it would take more than half a year to remove oversupply if OPEC were to cut by two million barrels per day.

In 2001, OPEC cut by five million barrels per day in four stages, or about 20 percent of its supply. That laid the foundation for a six-year boom in oil prices that culminated this summer in a record 147.27 US dollars a barrel.

With the news of OPEC huge production cuts, light, sweet crude for January on the New York Mercantile Exchange peaked briefly above 50 US dollars a barrel early on Monday.

But it then fell 1.77 US dollars to settle at about 44.5 US dollars with more dour economic news from both Asia and the US.

(CCTV December 17, 2008)