Chad's oil minister said on Saturday he wanted a U.S.-led oil consortium to pay at least $100 million by Tuesday to circumvent a World Bank freeze on oil profits or else crude production would be halted. The World Bank has frozen oil profits from a pipeline in Chad saved in a London escrow account in a dispute over how the revenues are spent. The savings include royalties from the pipeline's operator, Exxon Mobil. "We want at least $100 million paid (by the oil consortium) by Tuesday midday," Oil Minister Mahamat Nasser Hassan told Reuters in a telephone interview. "We have asked Exxon Mobil, Petronas and Chevron to put the money directly in the state treasury account. If they do not agree by Tuesday midday, we will stop oil production," he said. Exxon Mobil said it was talking to the government, consortium members and other relevant parties about the demand but declined to comment on whether it would pay the money.
