September 14 in History
1960 – The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is founded
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), an organization enabling the co-operation of leading oil-producing countries in order to collectively influence the global oil market and maximize profit, was founded on this day in 1960 in Baghdad by the first five members, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela.
Now comprising13 member countries, the organization account for an estimated 30% of global oil production.
In a series of steps in the 1960s and 1970s, OPEC restructured the global system of oil production in favour of oil-producing states and away from an oligopoly of dominant Anglo-American oil firms (the “Seven Sisters“).
In the 1970s, restrictions in oil production led to a dramatic rise in oil prices with long-lasting and far-reaching consequences for the global economy. The formation of OPEC marked a turning point toward national sovereignty over natural resources. OPEC decisions have come to play a prominent role in the global oil-market and in international relations. Economists have characterized OPEC as a textbook example of a cartel (a group whose members cooperate to reduce market competition) but one whose consultations may be protected by the doctrine of state immunity under international law.[
Current OPEC members are Algeria, Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, the Republic of the Congo, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela. Meanwhile, Ecuador, Indonesia and Qatar are former OPEC members. A larger group called OPEC+, consisting of OPEC members plus other oil-producing countries, formed in late 2016 to exert more control on the global crude-oil market. Canada, Egypt, Norway and Oman are observer states.
-Wikipedia
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