OPEC daily basket price stood at $76.46 a barrel Thursday, 13 September 2018
Vienna, Austria, 14 September 2018–The price of OPEC basket of fifteen crudes stood at $76.46 a barrel on Thursday, compared with $77.16 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.
The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Djeno (Congo), Oriente (Ecuador), Zafiro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi Light (Gabon), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Qatar Marine (Qatar), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).
OPEC AT 58
OPEC was 58 years old, September 14. Here is a look at how the body has come.
September 14, 1960, the five Founding Fathers of OPEC, Juan Pablo Pérez Alfonzo of Venezuela, Abdullah al-Tariki of Saudi Arabia, Dr Tala’at al-Shaibani of Iraq, Dr Fuad Rouhani of IR Iran and Ahmed Sayed Omar of Kuwait came together in Baghdad at the Al-Shaab Hall in the Bab Al-Muaatham district to establish OPEC at what is now known as the historic ‘Baghdad Conference’.
Fifty eight years ago, these five Founding Members representing their oil-producing nations joined collectively around the premise of cooperation, with a commitment to safeguard their legitimate national interests and to ensure order and stability in the international oil market.
When OPEC was set up, there were some who predicted that the Organization would not last long. Yet, little by little, OPEC began to make its mark. In this light, the formation of OPEC was a pioneering act, an act that demonstrated that even developing countries had rights. Since then, this group has been joined by many new Members, with the Organization now standing at 15 countries, with the Republic of the Congo the most recent Member, joining in June 2018.
Over the years, the Organization has demonstrated repeatedly its commitment to market order and stability, to enhancing and building better cooperation and dialogue among producers and consumers, as well as international organizations, and to helping tackle a plethora of challenges, including those related to the environment and sustainable development.
This has been clearly emphasized over the past 20 months through the landmark ‘Declaration of Cooperation’ between 25 OPEC and non-OPEC producers.
OPEC Secretary General, Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, said: “It is important to recognize this day, to firstly pause and acknowledge the past, to highlight just how far OPEC has come and to remember all those people that have worked so hard and sacrificed so much for the Organization. And secondly, to think about the future; I firmly believe the Organization’s, as well as the oil industry’s, best days still lie ahead.”
OPEC International Seminar: records and reflections
OPEC Bulletin Commentary June/July 2018
A great deal of European history has been written at the magnificent Hofburg Palace in Vienna. It was here where the Congress of Vienna met in 1814 and 1815, a meeting of ambassadors of European states chaired by the legendary Austrian statesman Klemens von Metternich. It was a meeting that many have credited as having created long-term stability across Europe.
The emphasis on dialogue and stability made the Hofburg Palace an entirely appropriate location for the two-day 7th OPEC International Seminar, with its central theme: ‘Petroleum — cooperation for a sustainable future’, tackling such issues as evolving a sustainable energy future; technology breakthroughs; the energy transition; the environment; oil industry challenges; investments; and, the global economy.
At OPEC, we believe in continuing to develop existing and new avenues of cooperation with innovative thinking and collaboration on key issues, many of which are complex, broad and inter-related. The 7th OPEC International Seminar was a perfect platform for this.
The Seminar brought together people from all over the world to listen to the wisdom and insights from a veritable who’s who of global oil and energy industry leaders, who discussed and debated the industry’s pressing challenges and future opportunities. It was also a perfect venue for participants to reacquaint themselves with old contacts and friends, and make new ones too.
This year’s Seminar broke new ground and set new records, with more than 950 participants from over 50 nations, around 80 speakers, 60 ministers and CEOs, 19 sponsors, 20 exhibitors, and 170 journalists, analysts and photographers. It saw the Secretariat’s audiovisual team take over 7,000 pictures and record more than 9 terabytes of video coverage, while the Organization received thousands of interactions on both Twitter and Facebook.
It was also an occasion to reflect on the industry’s past, present and future, and it was evident among participants that the importance of dialogue between all industry stakeholders has never been greater in this increasingly interdependent world. The Seminar was an ideal opportunity to reinforce existing bonds, and build new bridges.
This was evident in the talk about the impact of the historic ‘Declaration of Cooperation’, between 24 OPEC and non-OPEC producers (now 25 with the Republic of the Congo joining OPEC), which has over the last 18 months helped bring more balance to the oil market, more confidence to the industry and has had a positive impact on the global economy and trade worldwide.
The general sentiment at the Seminar was that the ‘Declaration of Cooperation’ now constitutes a fundamental and essential feature of the ‘new world of energy’. Moreover, it is clear it has caused a significant and positive shift in industry-wide and public perceptions of OPEC.
In looking to the future, there was near unanimous opinion that the industry should be optimistic. That is not to say that the industry does not face challenges and uncertainties, many of which were deliberated on at the Seminar, but oil will remain a central part of the global energy mix for the foreseeable future.
The upbeat nature of the Seminar was reflected in the closing remarks from the OPEC Secretary General, Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, who said that his interactions over the past two days, especially with the young students and leaders of tomorrow, “means I bound with optimism that even though we have achieved so much in the past, our industry’s best days are ahead of us.”
To secure this future, the focus needs to be on ensuring a sustainable stability, with a healthy balance between supply and demand, and where both producers and consumers are satisfied.
These were issues to the fore on the two days following the Seminar, at the 174th Meeting of the OPEC Ministerial Conference and the 4th OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting. Here, countries decided that they will strive to adhere to the overall conformity level in the ‘Declaration of Cooperation’, voluntarily adjusted to 100 per cent, as of July 1, 2018.
Moreover, all the countries at these meetings reaffirmed their commitment to a stable market, the mutual interest of producing nations, the efficient, economic and secure supply to consumers, and a fair return on invested capital.
It proved to be a busy week, but one of great accomplishment and significant achievements. What was palpably central to all of it was one word: cooperation. It is something that OPEC truly values, and believes in.
As the English philosopher and Noble Prize winner Bertrand Russell aptly once said: “The only thing that will redeem mankind is cooperation.”
OPEC Statement to the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 23)
Delivered by HE Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, OPEC Secretary General, at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 23/CMP 13/CMA 1-2), 16 November 2017, Bonn, Germany.
Mr. President,
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
On behalf of OPEC, I would like to offer our deep appreciation to the Government of Fiji, the city of Bonn, and the UNFCCC Secretariat, for their excellent arrangements and warm hospitality.
We join all Parties in congratulating Fijian Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama for courageously undertaking the Presidency of COP 23 at this crucial time in the UNFCCC process.
OPEC remains fully engaged and supportive of the Paris Agreement. We believe a global consensus out of the multilateral process remains the best and most inclusive way for all nations to collectively tackle climate change in a fair and equitable manner.
In terms of the implementation of the Paris Agreement, we need to ensure a Party-driven process; recall different national circumstances; evoke the principles of equity and of common but differentiated responsibilities; balance mitigation, adaptation and the means of implementation, including financing for developing countries to support their actions; and take into account the overriding priority of sustainable development.
This should appreciate what the term ‘energy transition’ means for those 1.1 billion people in developing countries that continue to suffer from acute energy poverty. It is not about a transition from one energy source to another; it is about the right to have access to modern energy services for the first time, to provide warmth, light and mobility.
It should also not discriminate against any energy source. The world will continue to need all energy sources now and in the future. It is therefore vital we collectively develop and adopt technologies that transform the environmental credentials of all energies. In this regard, OPEC welcomes coordinated action between all Parties, with industry and through various research and development platforms.
The comprehensive implementation of the Paris Agreement should be ‘win-win’ in nature, recognize the diverse priorities and circumstances of all Parties, and contribute to global growth, development and prosperity.
Thank you.
HE Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, OPEC Secretary General, at the UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany
OPEC Meetings
Here you can find details of forthcoming OPEC events. Journalists and oil industry analysts are welcome to attend these events, provided that they register in advance.
| Date | Event | Venue |
| 3 December 2018 | 175th (Ordinary) OPEC Meeting | Vienna, Austria |
Source: OPEC website
Energy Network 