Qatar is to leave OPEC next month in order for the Gulf state to focus on gas production, the country’s new Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi announced in a surprise move on Monday.
Qatar is to leave OPEC next month in order for the Gulf state to focus on gas production, the country’s new Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi announced in a surprise move on Monday.
Qatar has been a member of OPEC since 1961, and the decision to pull out comes at a turbulent time in Gulf politics, with Doha under a boycott by former neighbouring allies including Saudi Arabia for 18 months.
« Qatar has decided to withdraw its membership from OPEC effective January 2019 and this decision was communicated to OPEC this morning, » Kaabi said at a Doha press conference.
Kaabi, who also heads state-owned Qatar Petroleum, denied the move was linked to the feud with Saudi Arabia and its allies.
The decision was « technical and strategic » and had « nothing to do with the blockade, » he said.
