United Arab Emirates withdraws from Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has announced its withdrawal from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its expanded format (OPEC+). The country had been a member of the cartel since 1967.

UAE Energy Minister Suhail Mohamed al-Mazrouei told this to Reuters on Tuesday, April 28.

According to him, this decision was made after a thorough analysis of the energy strategies of regional states.

"This is a policy decision, it has been done after a careful look at current and future policies related to level of production," said the UAE Energy Minister.

When asked whether the UAE had consulted with the de facto leader of the cartel — Saudi Arabia — regarding its withdrawal, al-Mazroui replied that Abu Dhabi had not raised this issue with any other country.

He added that the UAE’s withdrawal from OPEC would not have a significant impact on the market due to the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, through which energy exports have been blocked since late February due to the war between Israel and the US against Iran.

The UAE’s withdrawal from the cartel was preceded by Abu Dhabi’s criticism of other “Arab Street” members for not doing enough to protect the country during numerous airstrikes by Iran.

Earlier, Abu Dhabi stated that the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council had supported one another logistically, but from a political and military standpoint, their position “was the weakest in history.”

Operating outside the cartel will allow the UAE to fully leverage its position as a supplier of crude oil, which is among the cheapest and has a low carbon content.

Reuters also reports that the UAE’s exit from OPEC is a victory for US President Donald Trump, who during his previous term accused the cartel of “ripping off” the rest of the world by inflating oil prices.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, on April 5, OPEC+ (the expanded OPEC format) agreed to increase oil production quotas in May by more than 200,000 barrels per day.

As a reminder, shortly before that, Reuters reported that in March, OPEC countries lost a quarter of their oil exports due to the consequences of the war against Iran.