Opec down but not out

A new history of Opec says the organisation is being undermined in part by the ambitions of national oil companies

Never has Opec’s relevance—and future—been questioned more than today. This is hardly surprising. For leaving aside any discussion of price or output strategy, changes are afoot. Opec’s dominant member, Saudi Arabia, has embarked on a course aimed at ending the country’s reliance on oil. The United Arab Emirates is the region’s leading developer of renewables. And Qatar has dropped out of Opec.  Media headlines suggest that Opec’s obituary is being prepared: “Opec is not dead yet, but it has lost control of the market,” said one in July 2019. “Opec losing control, share in global market,” said another in October. The perfect context, one might say, for a book entitled The Rise and Fall of Op