Oil price drop not catastrophic - minister

Abu Dhabi - UAE Oil Minister Suhail al-Mazrouei said Monday that the current slide in oil prices will "not be catastrophic" for his oil-rich country, thanks to economic diversification.

Oil cartel Opec will "deal appropriately with the current drop" when it meets on Thursday in Vienna, he told reporters in Abu Dhabi without elaborating.

Mazrouei said that the fall in prices is "not new", adding that oil revenues contribute only 30% of the UAE's gross domestic product.

Oil prices have collapsed to four-year lows on factors including dampening demand in a sluggish world economy, a sharp rise in output from shale oil and other unconventional sources, and a strong dollar.

A barrel of crude has plunged in value from above $100 earlier this year to around $80.

The UAE pumps around 2.8 million barrels of crude per day, the third highest amount among Opec producers.