Angola said it would leave the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in a blow to the Saudi-led oil producer group that has sought in recent months to rally support for further output cuts to prop up oil prices.
Angola’s Minister of Oil, Diamantino Azevedo, said the organisation no longer served the interest of the country.
It joins other mid-sized producers Ecuador and Qatar that have left OPEC in the past decade.
Also Read:
- FG bans use of foreign syringes, needles in tertiary hospitals
- Contempt: Appeal Court grants EFCC’s exparte motion for stay of proceedings, fixes date for hearing
- Court orders arrest of ex-Naval Chief over N1.5 b ‘fraud’ case
- Oyebanji receives Daily Independent’s Governor of the Year Award
- Police arrest 19-year-old for allegedly robbing female students
“We feel that … Angola currently gains nothing by remaining in the organisation and, in defense of its interests, decided to leave,” Azevedo was quoted as saying in a presidency statement.
International oil prices dropped by as much as 2.4 percent on Thursday as analysts said the departure raised questions about the unity of OPEC and OPEC+, the wider group that includes Russia and other OPEC allies.
OPEC+ implemented a new round of oil output cuts in January to try to strengthen the market.
Reuters/NAN.