OPEC Secretary General concludes successful missions to Iraq and Kazakhstan

In coordination with HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al-Saud, Minister of Energy of Saudi Arabia and the Chairman of the OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meetings under the Declaration of Cooperation (DoC), HE Haitham Al Ghais, OPEC Secretary General, has concluded official visits to Iraq and Kazakhstan to discuss market conditions and underscore the critical importance of ensuring that ongoing oil market stabilization efforts by DoC Participating Countries are successful. 

During these visits, which took place between 26 and 29 August 2024, both countries reaffirmed their unconditional commitment to the full and timely implementation of production adjustments, including the compensation plans as agreed under the DoC framework, and submitted to the OPEC Secretariat on 22 August 2024. 

During his visit to OPEC Founder Member Iraq, the Secretary General met with HE Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani, Prime Minister of the Republic of Iraq. The meeting was attended by HE Hayan Abdulghani Abdulzahra Alsawad, Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Affairs and Minister of Oil and other high-level officials from SOMO. At the meeting, HE Hon. Al Sudani reiterated Iraq’s full commitment and unwavering support to DoC efforts in supporting oil market stability and reiterated Iraq’s commitment to the full and timely implementation of its production adjustments, including compensation plans.  HE Al Ghais also separately met with HE Alsawad and high-level officials in the Oil Ministry and SOMO.

Speaking of his mission to Iraq, HE Al Ghais stated, “Returning to Iraq, a Founder Member of OPEC and birthplace of our Organization, is always a great pleasure. I received strong assurances that Iraq continues to be fully committed to the DoC’s ongoing market stabilization efforts. During this visit, Iraq presented clear and determined steps to compensate for overproduced volumes and gave assurances that it would achieve full conformity going forward.”

Earlier in the week, marking his first visit to Kazakhstan as OPEC Secretary General, HE Al Ghais held a bilateral meeting with HE Hon. Olzhas Bektenov, Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan, in Astana. The meeting was attended by high-level officials including HE Nurlan Baibazarov, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Economy, HE Almassadam Satkaliyev, Minister of Energy, and Mr Askhat Khassenov, Chairman of the Management Board of KazMunayGas. At the meeting, the Hon. Prime Minister highlighted the pivotal role that OPEC Member Countries and countries participating in the DoC have played since 2016 in contributing to oil market stability and overcoming market challenges. The Prime Minister reiterated Kazakhstan’s firm support for market stabilization efforts and commitment to fulfilling its obligations under the DoC process.

In a separate meeting with HE Almassadam Satkaliyev, the Secretary General and the Minister discussed current oil market fundamentals and reiterated the critical importance of the timely implementation of DoC production adjustments, including compensation as agreed under the DoC framework.  

Speaking of his mission to Kazakhstan, HE Al Ghais stated, “It is a great pleasure for me to visit Kazakhstan and speak with the country’s leadership. My discussions with the Prime Minister, HE Hon. Olzhas Bektenov, and other officials have been extremely fruitful. Kazakhstan reiterated its commitment to adhering to full conformity with its production adjustments and the compensation mechanism. Kazakhstan also presented a detailed plan on how it will compensate for overproduction and hence achieve full conformity over the next few months. This will play an important role in the DoC’s ongoing market stabilization efforts.” 

In follow-up to these official visits, both Iraq and Kazakhstan held separate constructive videoconference calls with the secondary sources, in which both countries renewed their commitment to the DoC production adjustments and shared their detailed plans to adjust production, as part of their efforts to attend to the compensation plans submitted earlier this month with the OPEC Secretariat.