OPEC rescued oil from total collapse, says Barkindo

Oil producing group OPEC is responsible for rescuing the entire oil industry with its oil output cut deal, OPEC's secretary general Mohammad Barkindo told CNBC.

"The decisions that OPEC took, together with our non-OPEC partners, literally rescued this industry from total collapse," he said.

Asked about his opinion as regards the US Congress' consideration of antitrust legislation that could hurt OPEC – specifically, the "No-Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels Act" (NOPEC) bill that could allow OPEC to be sued for coordinating production and influencing oil prices – Barkindo said actions taken by OPEC had in fact helped US producers.