The commentary went on to state a truth that few will even discuss behind closed doors: The current policy prompted Angola to quit OPEC+, and others could soon follow. Javan warned that Gabon, Equatorial Guinea and Republic of Congo “are likely to reconsider their membership”.
The best scandals are those that start when someone, somewhere, decides to say something utterly shocking: the truth! A senior official of the OPEC+ oil cartel has said publicly what many thought privately — the group has been keeping oil prices too high, effectively subsidising its rivals. The result? It cannot increase production and instead relies on ever-increasing output cuts.
Afshin Javan, the No. 2 official in the Iranian delegation to OPEC+, published a commentary on his country’s state-run news agency Shana on Nov 26. The group, he argued, faced a “a supply glut” largely of its own making following several years of production cuts. “This strategy in support of prices has effectively encouraged higher supply outside the group, particularly on the part of the US,” he said. “That would leave a limited room for maneuvering by OPEC+ to ease its restrictions.”
