At Energy Connects, Robin Mills explains that tensions within OPEC have been building for years, particularly over production quotas and the mismatch between members’ oil capacity and their allowed output. It argues that the UAE’s reported exit (“OPEXIT”) reflects frustration that its rising production capacity is no longer properly reflected in its quota.
Mills also notes that the expansion of OPEC+ increased the group’s influence but deepened internal disagreements, especially among major producers such as Saudi Arabia and Russia, as well as among other members with differing capacities and economic priorities. The article concludes that OPEC’s effectiveness as a global oil stabilizing body is weakening as internal divisions grow and its share of global supply declines.
