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- Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), international organization, created in 1960 on initiative of Saudi Arabia, of Iran, Iraq, Al Kuwait and Venezuela, and loaded(charged) to coordinate the oil politics(policies) of States members. OPEC counts today twelve members: Algeria, Gabun, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Al Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, close(plain) Arabic Emirats and Venezuela (the Equator joined OPEC in 1973 and left it in 1992). The seat of the OPEC is in Vienna, in Austria. The supreme authority of the organization is Conference, established(constituted) by representatives high-ranking governments of the members which meet at least twice a year to formulate their politics(policy). The council of the governors applies the resolutions of the Conference and steers the organization. Since the creation, OPEC had to assert itself in front of the cautiousness of the oil companies which finally accepted her(it) as interlocutor. The creation of the OPEC had very important consequences. The existence brought the definition of a common politics(policy) of the States of the third world, favored by the fact that the post of Secretary-General is occupied by a civil servant of different nationality to every renewal. This politics(policy) of dialogue allows the adaptation of the basic principles which govern the oil legislation of States members.
The charter of the OPEC elaborated in Caracas in 1961 plans to increase the oil incomes of member countries to assure(insure) their development, to assure(insure) gradually their control on their production and to unify the politics(policies) of production notably by means of quotae. The oil politics(policy) of the OPEC
At first, from 1960 till 1970, OPEC was interested only in royalties paid(poured) by the international oil companies. Besides, the attempts to elaborate a common politics(policy) stagnated. Even indicative quotae were not respected. 1970's marked a bend on the economic and political foreheads(fronts). On the economic plan, the consumer States dashed into a conversion in the oil productions of their energy consumption to the detriment of the other sources of energy: demand exploded and balance of power among producers and consumer was reversed for the benefit of the first. At the same time, at political level, the petroleum became a weapon of blackmail which exercised on the occasion of the war of Kippour, in 1973 , enters Israel and the " Arabic Nation ". The Arabic countries imposed an embargo on countries supporting Israel, creating so a panic in the consumer countries. In this occasion built up itself the free market of Rotterdam. It was first oil crisis. Then the market calmed down, the producing countries being afraid of the reaction of the consumer countries which dashed into retrenchment policies of energy. A moratorium on prices was even signed in Geneva in 1977 and in Caracas in 1978.
In the end of 1970, the institution of an Islamic regime in Iran and the war Iran-Irak were afraid of the other scarcities, what ends in a new price increase. From then on, the politics(policy) of the OPEC became more aggressive. This second oil crisis had consequences heavier than the first for the consumer countries deficits of which increased brutally. The not producing States of the Third World particularly underwent the consequences of it. The market stabilized only in 1981 and the first objective of the OPEC seemed partially reached(affected).
Second objective became a reality only from 1972. To assure(insure) the seizure of the producing countries by their resources, three solutions were adopted. The first consisted in expropriating the international companies by nationalizing them (Algeria in 1971, Libya and Iraq in 1972). The other countries adopted more supple measures with base of gradually increasing participation in companies(societies) developers by means of national companies created for that purpose. The framework agreement of NewYork in 1972 confirmed this measure taken notably by the countries of the bay Arabo-persique. Third solution: countries holders of oil resources mirror in production of the unexploited deposits in association with companies which serve of operators working under the control of the State host (for example Indonesia). OPEC after second oil crisis
The limits of the oil politics(policy) of the OPEC
Since then, the reaction of the consumer countries (drastic savings, valuation of new deposits in the North Sea notably and new forms of energy) weakened the position of the OPEC. Prices stagnate, production is in decline and the oil incomes decrease, placing the producing States in difficult situations. OPEC gets organized. Two solutions are recommended: to develop production to lower prices and so to return demand towards the OPEC to the detriment of the other more expensive producers or, on the contrary, to rationalize production to create a generative scarcity of high price. First solution can succeed only if it is led collectively with all the members of the OPEC. Now all have the same capacity to be increased their production. Second solution requires a consensus impossible to implement because of political and economic differences between certain members. Indeed, a decline of the immediate incomes would be catastrophic for certain African countries notably. Finally, this solution encourages the consumer countries in their politics aiming to get loose from their dependence toward the OPEC. The politics of quotae having failed, in 1985 , it is the second solution which was adopted. There also, OPEC undergoes a grave failure: the overproduction fell(flopped) prices and so oil incomes. In the end of 1980's, it is the conciliation which was for the agenda. This conciliation was translated by an acceptable price stabilization by the producers, that they fissent or not left for the OPEC, and the consumers. It also pulled(entailed) acceptance by the producers outside the OPEC of a decline of their production to avoid a fall of the classes of the producers members of the OPEC.
It seems, at the beginning of 1990's, when OPEC failed in its will to unify the politics of production, the third shutter foreseen by the charter.
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