ShareKUWAIT: The General Secretariat of the organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) on Thursday launched the 50th edition of the Secretary-General’s annual report for 2023, which reviews the most important Arab and global developments in various activities of the energy industry in general and oil and gas in particular, in addition to the environment and sustainable development.
OAPEC Secretary General Jamal Al-Loughani said during a ceremony held in the presence of a number of members of the diplomatic corps accredited to the country from the OAPEC member states that the report included a number of statistics that reflect the important strategic position of OAPEC member states in the global energy industry.
Al-Loughani stated that the release of the 50th edition comes as the organization has completed 55 years since its establishment in January 1968. OAPEC is considered one of the leading and important achievements in the march of joint Arab action. He stressed that the organization has sought through these decades, with the great support of its member states, to encourage cooperation in various aspects of economic activity in the petroleum industry, pointing out that it has registered a distinguished and active presence in most activities and events related to the oil, natural gas, and energy industries in general.
He pointed out that the timing of the release of the report coincided with the significant fluctuations witnessed by the global oil markets affected by many factors, including the slow recovery, the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, and the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, as well as severe disruptions in the US banking sector and the uncertainty associated with monetary policies.
OAPEC Secretary General said that the escalation of geopolitical unrest in the Middle East during the last quarter of 2023 negatively affected supply chains and global trade, noting the positive role of ending the zero COVID policy in China and its key role in the rise in global demand for oil. Al-Loughani praised the efforts exerted by the organization’s member states within the framework of the OPEC+ group of countries in order to achieve stability and balance in the global oil market by following the successful approach of taking proactive measures.
The report seeks to highlight the various issues mentioned, and the analysis to be drawn from it will give a clear-cut picture of the developments witnessed by the energy industry during 2023, and it also highlights the efforts made by member states to develop their petroleum industries. It was reported that some OAPEC member countries announced new oil and gas discoveries.— KUNA
