Oil prices could surge to as much as $250 a barrel if terrorists attack oil tankers and reserves in Libya and the Middle East, Britain’s International Development Minister Alan Duncan, a former oil trader, told the Times.

Such a gain in the oil price would cause a “serious spike” in fuel prices to about 2 pounds ($3.25) per liter, Duncan said in an interview in the London-based Times newspaper.

Oil prices of $200 a barrel are “on the cards” if anyone is “reckless and foments unrest,” Duncan was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

To contact the reporter on this story: Sarah Shannon in London at sshannon4@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Paul Verschuur at pverschuur@bloomberg.net