Kuwait Petroleum International says oil prices could reach $50 a barrel mid-2017

ABU DHABI (Reuters) - Kuwait Petroleum International (KPI) said on Saturday oil prices could reach a range of $50 to $60 a barrel by mid-2017, the official state news agency reported.

The agency quoted the company's top executive Bakheet al-Rashidi as saying prices could reach the range of $60 to $80 a barrel in three years' time.

"The global oil market is going through a correction and we have reached the bottom," he was quoted as saying by the official Kuwait news agency, who added that Rashidi had made his comments at a company event in London.

Rashidi attributed the drop in oil prices to excess supply in the market and slow demand from Asia, particularly China.

Asked whether oil prices would ever reach the $100 per barrel level again, Rashidi said, "We can reach prices ranging between $60 and $80 but we need three years."

On Vietnam's Nghi Son refinery, Rashidi said it would start operations by the end of 2016.

(Reporting By Ali Abdelatty; Writing By Maha El Dahan; Editing by Toby Chopra)