Declaration of Cooperation
The Declaration of Cooperation (DoC) constitutes an unprecedented milestone in the history of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). For the first time ever, OPEC Member Countries coordinated with 11 non-OPEC oil producing countries (now 10 – Equatorial Guinea became an OPEC Member in May 2017) in a concerted effort to accelerate the stabilization of the global oil market.
The DoC was an outcome of the Joint OPEC and non-OPEC Producing Countries’ Ministerial Meeting held on 10 December 2016 and was effective for an initial period of six months. The remarkable success realised through this unprecedented cooperation has led to its extension multiple times.
Building on the success of the DoC, its participants recognised the importance of establishing a more permanent platform focused on longer-term cooperation. Thus, at the 6th OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting, held on 2 July 2019, OPEC Member Countries and attending non-OPEC oil producing countries endorsed the ‘Charter of Cooperation’. The Charter provides a platform to facilitate dialogue and exchange views regarding conditions and developments in the global oil and energy markets. The goal is to contribute to a secure energy supply and lasting stability for the benefit of producers, consumers, investors and the global economy.
In light of the COVID-19 outbreak and its impact on the world economy and the oil sector, members of the DoC held three Ministerial Meetings between April and June 2020. In addition, OPEC Member Countries convened for the 179th Meeting of the OPEC Conference on 6 June to explore possible avenues to reduce market volatility, reaffirming the countries’ commitment to a stable oil market.
The outcome of these meetings was the largest and longest voluntary production adjustments in the history of the oil sector.
The importance of these efforts was recognised at the highest levels of government around the world. For example, the extraordinary G20 Energy Ministers meeting on 10 April highlighted the commitment of DoC countries to promote energy markets stability and the importance of international cooperation in ensuring the resilience of energy systems.
DoC Ministerial Meetings are supported by the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC), which is mandated to monitor the conformity of voluntary production adjustments, review market conditions and recommend further decisions to the DoC Ministerial Meeting. The JMMC is supported, at its turn, by the Joint Technical Committee (JTC) and the OPEC Secretariat.
The DoC is based on the core principles of transparency, equity and fairness, which also serve as the foundation for all OPEC interactions with non-OPEC oil-producing partners, including cooperation at the research and technical levels.