OPEC's chief Monday said he didn't fear any collapse of oil prices as he expects markets to remain balanced through 2013.

Some analysts have warned that crude prices could fall in the coming months as a result of historically high oil production combined with low demand due to economies woes.

Speaking at a Chatham House energy conference, Abdalla Salem el-Badri, secretary general of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, said "we don't see an oil price collapse."

"At present we believe the market is well balanced," he said, adding that OPEC expected the market "to remain well supplied to meet oil-demand growth" for the rest of the year.

However, the head of OPEC--which produces more than one in three barrels of the oil consumed in the world each day--warned that excessive speculation driven by geopolitics and the economy could keep prices volatile.

He also pointed out that any steep drop in oil prices could not only hurt many of OPEC's oil-dependent economies but also investments in oil projects.

Low prices could "potentially impact the entire oil market-if global investment is put on hold or cancelled all together," Mr. Badri said.

"Such outcomes could sow the seeds for extremely high oil prices in the future," he added.

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