His comments, recorded last week, were aired on Tuesday, just days before the OPEC and other leading oil producers, including Russia, meet in Vienna to discuss their further joint actions on the global oil market.

Alekperov said that Russia would be able to restore oil production at the wells, voluntarily stopped as part of the efforts to curb output, "only in six months" due to harsh winter conditions.

He said that the current oil price of around $63-$64 per barrel is suitable both for producers and consumers, reiterating that he hoped that OPEC and its allies convene again in March, before the current deal expires.

(Reporting by Maria Kiselyova; writing by Vladimir Soldatkin; editing by Louise Heavens)