The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is the permanent intergovernmental Organization of oil-exporting Countries. It was founded in Baghdad in September 1960 by five Countries, namely Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela (“Founder Members”). Over the years, the membership increased and nowadays OPEC includes 13 Member States: Libya (1962), United Arab Emirates (1967), Algeria (1969), Nigeria (1971), Gabon (1975), Angola (2007), Equatorial Guinea (2017) and Congo (2018).
In accordance with its Statute, the mission of the Organization is to coordinate and unify the petroleum policies of its Member Countries and ensure the stabilization of oil markets in order to secure an efficient, economic and regular supply of petroleum to consumers, a steady income to producers and a fair return on capital for those investing in the oil industry.
The current OPEC Secretary General is Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo (Nigeria).