OPEC

OPEC — the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries — is the oil producers’ cartel. It was founded on 14 September 1960 in Baghdad by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela. Its headquarters have been in Vienna since 1965.

OPEC’s membership has changed over the decades as countries joined, left and rejoined: Qatar left in 2019, Angola in 2024. The Factbook listing below shows 11 member countries.

The Conference of oil ministers is the supreme authority. A Board of Governors prepares its work, and a Secretariat in Vienna runs day-to-day business under a Secretary General: Haitham al-Ghais of Kuwait has held the post since 2022.

OPEC sets production quotas to influence world oil prices and publishes the closely watched Monthly Oil Market Report. Since December 2016 it has coordinated with ten non-OPEC producers, including Russia, under the Declaration of Cooperation — the wider OPEC+ format, policed by a Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee.

• OPEC, opec.org — Statute, members, Monthly Oil Market Report.
• OPEC Statute, 1961 — founding charter.
• Declaration of Cooperation, December 2016 — OPEC+ format.

OPEC has 11 member countries, ranked by national power. The strongest members are Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Libya. The Bureau lists every member with its power score, from the most powerful to the least. Membership reflects the Factbook's country coverage as of October 2026.