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United Arab Emirates announced on Tuesday its exit from OPEC and OPEC+, effective May 1, in a unilateral decision that shakes up the group of producers at the worst energy moment in decades, according to Reuters.
The Emirati Energy Minister, Suhail Mohamed al-Mazrouei, confirmed that the decision was not consulted with any other country, including Saudi Arabia, the de facto leader of the organization. "It is a policy decision, made after careful analysis of current and future policies related to production levels," al-Mazrouei stated.
The announcement comes in the context of the war against Iran that skyrocketed the price of oil from 67 dollars per barrel in February to over 108 dollars in April, an increase of nearly 50% in just two months.
Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz on March 4, halting the transit of 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas, approximately 20 million barrels per day, in what became the new global fracture line in the energy market.
The UAE was the country hardest hit by Iranian attacks during the conflict: it suffered 2,256 drones and 563 missiles, more than double that of Kuwait and almost ten times that of Qatar, with over 90% of the targets aimed at civilian infrastructure.
Emirati frustration with its regional allies was exposed a day before the announcement, when Anwar Gargash, diplomatic advisor to the president of the UAE, openly criticized the Gulf Cooperation Council at the Gulf Influencers Forum.
"The countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council supported each other logistically, but politically and militarily, I believe their position has historically been the weakest," Gargash stated.
"I expected this weak stance from the Arab League and I am not surprised, but I did not expect it from the Cooperation Council, and it surprises me," he added.
Al-Mazrouei acknowledged that the exit will not have a significant immediate impact on the market given the blockade of the strait, but emphasized that operating outside the group will allow the UAE to fully capitalize on its position as a supplier of low-cost, low-carbon barrels.
The decision also has structural roots: OPEC limited the Emirati production to about three million barrels per day, even though its actual capacity exceeds four million, and the country plans to reach five million by 2027.
The outcome is also interpreted as a victory for President Donald Trump, who in 2018 accused OPEC at the UN General Assembly of "exploiting" the countries that the United States militarily defends by imposing high prices.
This Tuesday, Senator Marco Rubio noted that Iran boasts of controlling 25% of global energy through the Strait of Hormuz, on a day when the energy crisis and the rift within the producing bloc dominated the international agenda.
Iran announced a temporary reopening of the strait on April 8, butclosed it again days later following an Israeli attack on a petrochemical plant in Asaluyeh, leaving the global energy market in a situation of historically low reserve capacity.
The UAE, which joined OPEC in 1967 through the emirate of Abu Dhabi and formalized its federal membership in 1974, considers its exit "a net positive outcome for consumers and the global economy," according to al-Mazrouei.
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