OPEC Secretary General Mohammed Barkindo speaks with the media during his visit to Abuja, Nigeria Febuary 27, 2017.REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is seeking to hold a second meeting with U.S. independent oil firms as well as hedge funds, OPEC’s Secretary General told Reuters, adding that no oil producer could afford to live in isolation.

The United States is not a member of OPEC and U.S. anti-trust legislation prohibits any collective action to influence prices - precisely what OPEC has been doing for the past decades.

He said the meeting could take place later this year or early in the next one.

“Both groups - independents and hedge funds - have become increasingly important in the energy markets,” Mohammed Barkindo told Reuters.

“What we are trying to do is to reach out to these companies who also operate in these markets, who also feel the pinch of volatility from time to time and the downturn,” said Barkindo who held the first meeting in Houston earlier this year.

“We cannot continue to live and operate in isolation. The world of energy is undergoing a massive structural transformation, energy transition is real.”