UAE Escalates OPEC Dispute as Tensions on Output Quotas Grow - Bloomberg
The United Arab Emirates ratcheted up tension with oil allies in OPEC+, with officials privately questioning the benefits of being in the producers’ alliance and even considering whether to leave it.
The UAE has not said publicly it’s debating its membership, let alone planning to exit. And officials briefed the media under condition they would not be named, allowing room for maneuver if they later want to distance themselves from the comments.
The move is unusual because the UAE -- the biggest producer in OPEC after Saudi Arabia and Iraq -- has long avoided public clashes, preferring to solve disputes quietly behind closed doors. It’s unclear whether the warning is designed to force a negotiation over output levels with OPEC+’s leaders Saudi Arabia and Russia, or if it represents a genuine policy debate. Any decision to leave OPEC would need the approval of Mohammed bin Zayed, the UAE’s de factor ruler and Abu Dhabi’s crown prince.
Tension between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi has grown since late summer, when the UAE breached its OPEC+ quota and got a stern warning from its neighbor. Emirati policy makers seem increasingly frustrated by what they see as an unfair allocation of production caps and as the UAE economy reels from shriveling oil revenue and the coronavirus pandemic.
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