Oil is the main source of technical hydrocarbon raw materials in the modern world. The importance of its extraction cannot be overestimated. A huge share of world oil exports is provided by only twelve countries, united under the international intergovernmental organization OPEC.
The term "OPEC" is a transliteration of the English abbreviation OPEC, which stands for The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. This name is translated into Russian as "Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries".
OPEC is an international intergovernmental organization headquartered in Vienna, which was established by countries that are the world's largest oil producers and exporters. The main goal of the organization is to develop a strategy for regulating and stabilizing oil prices in the global market, taking into account the commercial interests of the participating countries, regulating and limiting oil production and export by adopting quotas, and creating guarantees to ensure uninterrupted oil supplies to consumers.
OPEC was established from September 10 to September 14, 1960 during a conference held in Baghdad by representatives of the first participating countries. The initiator of the OPEC was Venezuela. The first countries included in the organization were Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Venezuela and Iraq. Now it also includes the United Arab Emirates, Angola, Qatar, Algeria, Libya, Ecuador and Nigeria (a total of 12 countries). Gabon (in 1994) and Indonesia (November 1, 2008) left OPEC.
OPEC member countries provide more than 40% of oil production and more than 50% of world oil exports. They own about 66% of all reserves of this type of raw materials on the planet. At its core, OPEC is a monopoly type association, otherwise called a cartel.
The main activity of the organization is carried out in the framework of meetings of energy ministers of member countries, held twice a year. At these meetings, the state of the international oil market is assessed and a pricing concept is developed based on the level of demand. Decisions are also being taken to stabilize the market situation.
