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Equatorial Guinea moves to join OPEC

Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Guinea Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons says it has submitted its interest to join the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in 2017.

The minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons, Gabriel Mbaga Obiang travelled to Vienna on January 20 to meet with OPEC officials and present the Government of Equatorial Guinea’s offer to become the 14th member of the cartel.

This comes as Energy ministers from OPEC and non-OPEC countries meet in Vienna to strike a positive note regarding their agreement to cut oil output as a committee set to monitor compliance.

With 32.5 million barrels per day of output projected this year, OPEC is the world’s largest organization of oil producers.

The minister’s trip to Vienna followed the Fourth Africa-Arab Summit, which hosted, last November, several OPEC members in Malabo, the capital of Equatorial Guinea.

“For decades, Equatorial Guinea has achieved a sterling track record as a dependable supplier of petroleum to consumers in all corners of the world. We firmly believe that Equatorial Guinea’s interests are fully aligned with those of OPEC in serving the best interests of the industry, Africa and the global economy,” said Obiang.

Equatorial Guinea had agreed on December 2015 to join 10 other non-OPEC countries to reduce 558,000 barrels per day of total oil production in 2017.

Equatorial Guinea’s share of the cut is 12,000 barrels per day. Even through a two-year sustained slump in oil prices, the small West African country maintained liquid output levels at a competitive level.

Equatorial Guinea is the third largest oil and gas producer in sub-Saharan Africa. Its $10.6 billion of annual oil and gas exports account for 95 percent of the country’s total exports, with the product sold every day to China, India, Japan, Korea and many other countries.

Equatorial Guinea is currently hosting its latest oil and gas licensing round, EG Ronda, putting on offer all of open acreage not currently operated or under direct negotiation. Equatorial Guinea has made 114 oil and gas discoveries to date with a drilling success rate of 42 percent.

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