UAE to quit OPEC and OPEC+
The United Arab Emirates said on Tuesday that it will leave the OPEC and OPEC+ oil cartels on 1 May, state media has reported.
“This decision reflects the UAE's long-term strategic and economic vision and evolving energy profile,” the official WAM news agency said.
The shock announcement could cause disarray in the groups of major oil producing countries and their de facto leader, Saudi Arabia, as the fallout from the war on Iran and the feud between the two Gulf kingdoms continues.
OPEC Gulf producers have already been struggling to ship exports through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow chokepoint between Iran and Oman through which a fifth of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) normally passes, because of Iranian threats and attacks against vessels issued in response to US and Israeli strikes.
The Emirati exit from OPEC represents a big win for US President Donald Trump, Reuters said. Trump has accused the organisation of “ripping off the rest of the world” by inflating oil prices.
Trump has also linked US military support for the Gulf with oil prices, saying that while the US defends OPEC members they “exploit this by imposing high oil prices”.