Opec stresses unity after Angola exit

Dubai/London — Opec said on Wednesday that co-operation and dialogue within the wider Opec+ oil producers’ alliance will continue, after Angola last month announced it would leave the group.

Continued co-operation within the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies such as Russia will benefit “all producers, consumers and investors, as well as the global economy at large,” Opec said in a statement.

Angola said on December 21 that it will leave Opec from this month, a move that prompted a drop in oil prices and that some analysts said raised questions about the unity of both Opec and the wider Opec+ alliance.

The statement made no mention of Angola but said that the oil cartel members were united.

“Opec member-countries reaffirm their steadfast commitment to the shared objectives of unity and cohesion both within the organisation, and with the non-Opec producing countries participating in the DoC,” it said, using Opec+’s formal name the Declaration of Cooperation.

Opec+ is making a further round of voluntary oil output cuts totalling about 2.2-million barrels per day (bpd) for the first quarter of 2024, adding to earlier reductions announced in various steps since late 2022, to support the market.

Reuters