OAPEC secretary general: OPEC+ decision to cut oil production correct, comes at right time
OAPEC secretary general: OPEC+ decision to cut oil production correct, comes at right time/node/2181571/business-economy
OAPEC secretary general: OPEC+ decision to cut oil production correct, comes at right time
According to the OAPEC secretary-general, the decision took into account the uncertainty surrounding the performance of the global economy. (Reuters/File Photo)
OAPEC secretary general: OPEC+ decision to cut oil production correct, comes at right time
OPEC and its allies lowered production target by 2 million barrels per day on Oct. 5
Updated 15 October 2022
Reuters
KUWAIT CITY: The secretary general of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) said on Saturday that the OPEC+ decision to cut its oil production target is correct and was taken at the right time.
The decision took into account the uncertainty surrounding the performance of the global economy, and was in line with the successful approach taken by OPEC+ in taking proactive steps to avoid any oil market imbalances, especially on the demand and supply sides, OAPEC secretary general Ali bin Sabt added in a statement.
OAPEC comprises Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Qatar, Syria, Tunisia and the UAE.
The 13-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies lowered their production target by 2 million barrels per day when they met on Oct. 5.
Saudi minister at Davos urges collaboration on minerals
The reason of the tension of geopolitics is actually the criticality of the minerals
Updated 20 January 2026
Arab News
LONDON: Countries need to collaborate on mining and resources to help avoid geopolitical tensions, Saudi Arabia’s minister of industry and mineral resources told the World Economic Forum on Tuesday.
“The reason of the tension of geopolitics is actually the criticality of the minerals, the concentration in different areas of the world,” Bandar Alkhorayef told a panel discussion on the geopolitics of materials.
“The rational thing to do is to collaborate, and that’s what we are doing,” he added. “We are creating a platform of collaboration in Saudi Arabia.”
Bandar Alkhorayef, Saudi Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources
The Kingdom last week hosted the Future Minerals Forum in Riyadh. Alkhorayef said the platform was launched by the government in 2022 as a contribution to the global community. “It’s very important to have a global movement, and that’s why we launched the Future Minerals Forum,” he said. “It is the most important platform of global mining leaders.”
The Kingdom has made mining one of the key pillars of its economy, rapidly expanding the sector under the Vision 2030 reform program with an eye on diversification. Saudi Arabia has an estimated $2.5 trillion in mineral wealth and the ramping up of extraction comes at a time of intense global competition for resources to drive technological development in areas like AI and renewables.
“We realized that unlocking the value that we have in our natural resources, of the different minerals that we have, will definitely help our economy to grow to diversify,” Alkhorayef said. The Kingdom has worked to reduce the timelines required to set up mines while also protecting local communities, he added. Obtaining mining permits in Saudi Arabia has been reduced to just 30 to 90 days compared to the many years required in other countries, Alkhorayef said.
“We learned very, very early that permitting is a bottleneck in the system,” he added. “We all know, and we have to be very, very frank about this, that mining doesn’t have a good reputation globally.
“We are trying to change this and cutting down the licensing process doesn’t only solve it. You need also to show the communities the impact of the mining on their lives.”
Saudi Arabia’s new mining investment laws have placed great emphasis on the development of society and local communities, along with protecting the environment and incorporating new technologies, Alkhorayef said. “We want to build the future mines; we don’t want to build old mines.”
