ORGANIZATION OF THE PETROLEUM EXPORTING COUNTRIES (OPEC)

• As the global recovery gains strength, the price of crude oil is nearing its highest level since 2018.
• Brent crude oil prices rose to USD 85.89 a barrel, the highest price since October 2018. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude prices climbed to USD 83.40 a barrel, highest since October 2014.
• On the other side the price of natural gas and coal are hitting record highs amid an intensifying energy shortage.

Important points:

• Generally, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) used to work as a cartel and fix prices in a favourable band.
• OPEC is led by Saudi Arabia, which is the largest exporter of crude oil in the world (single-handedly exporting 10% of the global demand).
• OPEC has a total of 13 Member Countries viz. Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Libya, Nigeria, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Congo, Angola, and Venezuela.
• OPEC could bring down prices by increasing oil production and raise prices by cutting production.
• The global oil pricing mainly depends upon the partnership between the global oil exporters instead of a well-functioning competition.
• Cutting oil production or completely shutting down an oil well is a difficult decision, because restarting it is immensely costly and complicated.
• Moreover, if a country cuts production, it risks losing market share if other countries do not follow the suit.
• Recently, OPEC has been working with Russia, as OPEC+ to fix the global prices and supply.
• In 2016, OPEC allied with other top non-OPEC oil-exporting nations to form an even more powerful entity named OPEC+ or OPEC Plus.

Reasons:

• Key oil producing countries have kept crude oil supplies on a gradually increasing production schedule despite a sharp increase in global crude oil prices.
• OPEC+ had agreed to sharp cuts in supply in 2020 in response to Covid-19 global travel restrictions in 2020 but the organisation has been slow to boost production as demand has recovered.
• Supply side issues in the US including disruptions caused by hurricane Ida and lower than expected natural gas supplies from Russia amid increasing demand in Europe have raised the prospect of natural gas shortages in the winter.

SOURCE: THE HINDU,THE ECONOMIC TIMES,MINT