Luanda - The Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Diamantino de Azevedo, announced on Thursday the withdrawal of Angola from OPEC.
The decision, duly considered, was taken in a session of the Council of Ministers, chaired by the President of the Republic, João Lourenço.
"We feel that at the moment Angola does not gain anything by remaining in the organization and, in defense of its interests, it has decided to leave," he said.
He stressed that the country has always fulfilled its obligations and fought all the time to see OPEC modernize, help its members to gain advantages.
Speaking to the press, the minister clarified that 'when we are in the organizations and our contributions, our ideas, do not produce any effect, the best thing is to exit'.
Angola's decision to leave OPEC has already been transformed into a decree law, signed by the President of the Republic, João Lourenço.
Angola voluntarily joined the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in 2006.
OPEC is an intergovernmental organization of 13 nations, founded on September 15, 1960 in Baghdad by the five founding members (Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela).
It has been headquartered since 1965 in Vienna, Austria, and as of September 2018, the 14 member countries accounted for 44% of global oil production and 81.5% of the world's proven reserves.
OPEC enjoys a great deal of influence on global oil prices, previously determined by the so-called 'Seven Sisters' grouping of multinational oil companies. JFS/VIC/DOJ
