BEIRUT (Reuters) - Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh will attend a meeting of an OPEC/non-OPEC committee that monitors output compliance, known as the JMMC, in Algeria in September, the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA) reported on Wednesday.
Zanganeh's goal in attending the meeting is to maintain Iran's oil market share, ISNA reported.
The meeting is scheduled to take place six weeks before U.S. sanctions on Iran's oil industry are due to take effect.
After months of underproduction, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed with Russia and other oil-producing allies to raise output from July by returning to 100 percent compliance with previously decided cuts. That would mean an output increase of roughly 1 million barrels per day.
Last week, Zanganeh sent a "letter of complaint" to his United Arab Emirates counterpart after noticing that some OPEC members were trying to adjust output, according to SHANA, the news site of the Iranian oil ministry.
Zanganeh told UAE Energy Minister Suhail al-Mazrouei, who holds the OPEC presidency in 2018, that the JMMC should not distribute output increases among other producers.
Zanganeh's comments underline the still-simmering tensions after OPEC's June meeting.
Saudi Arabia said the deal allowed countries able to produce more to meet the group's overall conformity level, meaning some members, such as itself, could make up for shortfalls elsewhere. Iran, which faces U.S. sanctions, disagreed and criticized Saudi plans to boost output above targeted levels.
The JMMC is chaired by Saudi Arabia and is due to meet next on Sept. 23 in Algeria. Iran is not on the committee, which also includes Russia, the UAE, Oman, Kuwait, Algeria and Venezuela.