Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

Why is it in news?
  • The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) tentatively agreed an oil-output cut but was waiting to hear from non-OPEC heavyweight Russia before deciding the exact volumes for a production reduction aimed at propping up crude prices.
  • Decision took place in 175th OPEC Conference of Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Vienna, Austria on December 6, 2018.  
More in news
  • Oil prices have crashed as Saudi Arabia, Russia and the United Arab Emirates raised output since June 2018 after Mr. Trump called for higher production to offset lower exports from Iran, OPEC's third-largest producer.
  • Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United States have been vying for the position of top crude producer in recent years.
  • The United States is not part of any output-limiting initiative due to its anti-trust legislation and fragmented oil industry.
OPEC
  • Mission-
  1. To coordinate and unify the petroleum policies of its Member Countries and ensure the stabilization of oil markets in order to secure an efficient, economic and regular supply of petroleum to consumers,
  2. A steady income to producers and
  3. A fair return on capital for those investing in the petroleum industry.
  • Member countries-
  • The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) was founded in Baghdad, Iraq.
  • Founder Members of the Organization- Five countries namely Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.
  • These countries were later joined by Qatar (1961), Indonesia (1962), Libya (1962), the United Arab Emirates (1967), Algeria (1969), Nigeria (1971), Ecuador (1973), Gabon (1975), Angola (2007), Equatorial Guinea (2017) and Congo (2018).
  • Ecuador suspended its membership in December 1992, but rejoined OPEC in October 2007.
  • Indonesia suspended its membership in January 2009, reactivated it again in January 2016, but decided to suspend its membership once more at the 171st Meeting of the OPEC Conference on 30 November 2016.
  • Gabon terminated its membership in January 1995. However, it rejoined the Organization in July 2016.
  • This means that, currently, the Organization has a total of 15 Member Countries.
  • Secretariat- Vienna
Source
The Hindu, OPEC



Posted by Jawwad Kazi on 7th Dec 2018
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