A truck passes in front of ADNOC Gas, a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company facility, in Abu Dhabi on March 3, 2026.
Ryan Lim | AFP | Getty Images
The United Arab Emirates’ decision to leave OPEC and OPEC+ is based on the country’s economic vision, not politics, the country’s energy minister said on Saturday.
In a post on
Earlier this month, Emirates announced that it would be withdrawing from OPEC, a group that has been a member since 1967, before the UAE was founded.
“This decision is not based on any political considerations and does not reflect any rift between the United Arab Emirates and its partner countries,” Mazrouei said.
Suhail Mohamed Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy of the United Arab Emirates, arrives to attend the 45th Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee and the 33rd OPEC and Non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting in Vienna, Austria on October 5, 2022.
Vladimir Simicek | AFP | Getty Images
The oil minister said the departure “represents a sovereign and strategic choice that stems from a long-term economic vision, evolving capabilities in the energy sector and a determined commitment to global energy security.”
Before the war, the UAE’s production was just over 3 million barrels per day, roughly in line with OPEC+ targets. Abu Dhabi is targeting a production capacity of 4.9 million BPD. Currently, due to the war, the UAE is producing between 1.8 million barrels per day and 2.1 million barrels per day.
The UAE was OPEC’s most influential member after Saudi Arabia. After announcing the UAE’s decision, Jorge León, head of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy, told CNBC that the country is one of the few member states, along with Saudi Arabia, that has meaningful spare capacity to influence prices and respond to supply shocks.
Reserve capacity is idle production that can be brought online quickly to deal with a major crisis. Saudi Arabia and the UAE together control the majority of the world’s total surplus production of more than 4 million barrels per day, making them particularly influential in times of disaster.
Oil prices rose on Friday on speculation that President Donald Trump is likely to return attention to the stalled conflict with Iran after completing a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
International benchmark Brent crude oil futures for July contract rose more than 3% to close at $109.26 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures for June rose more than 4% to settle at $105.42 per barrel.
Brent crude oil prices have risen 74% since the start of the year, but are still below the high of $118 a barrel hit in late April.
Brent crude oil price (USD per barrel), year-to-date.
Also on Friday, Abu Dhabi announced it was accelerating construction of a new east-west pipeline to Fujairah, aiming to expand oil export capacity and avoid the Strait of Hormuz chokepoint.
The project is expected to be operational in 2027 and will double the export capacity of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC).
The second pipeline project comes as global energy supplies remain under pressure, with flows through the Strait of Hormuz severely restricted and repeated attacks on energy infrastructure and shipping reducing the UAE’s ability to restore normal production.
