Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia pumped around 10.040 million barrels per day of crude oil last month, the highest in three decades, on higher demand and requests from customers, an oil official from the Gulf country said Wednesday.

The figure, which excludes condensates, "rose due to higher demand and as a response to customers' requests," the official told Dow Jones Newswires. The 10 million figure is significantly above prior estimates of November Saudi output and comes amid continued economic anxiety over the eurozone and as Libyan oil returns to market more quickly than previously thought.

The Saudi official declined to say whether the customers were European buyers or Asian.

Saudi officials, including Saudi Oil Minister Ali Naimi, have used the 10 million figure in public comments in recent days ahead of a Dec. 14 meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. There have been occasional calls in recent weeks from some OPEC countries such as Iran and Iraq for Saudi Arabia to reduce its output.

A Dow Jones Newswires survey earlier this month showed Saudi oil output at 9.417 million barrels per day in November and 9.45 million barrels a day in October.

Khalif al Falih, chief executive of state-giant Saudi Arabian Oil Co., or Aramco, said Tuesday that the firm would continue to be "very responsive" to customers' crude requirements.

Saudi Arabia has previously pledged to raise its output to as much as 10 million barrels a day after an OPEC meeting broke up in June without an agreement.

OPEC splintered into two camps: Gulf states led by Saudi Arabia that advocated for a 1.5-million-barrel-a-day increase to meet demand in the market after the loss of oil supplies from Libya , and other nations that opposed the move because of an uncertain outlook for the global economy.

In July, the kingdom produced an average 9.85 million barrels a day to meet higher demand in Asia and domestically to help offset a major disruption in Libyan crude, Saudi officials said.

A top Iranian oil official Wednesday said he expects OPEC to reach agreement next week. When asked a reaction to Saudi Arabia 's output boost at a time when Libya oil is returning, Muhammad Ali Khatibi, OPEC's Iran governor, downplayed any risk of new rift between members.

"We are very optimistic" a consensus will be reached at the next meeting Dec. 14 if there is no "outside interference," Khatibi said.

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