International Organisations in the Energy Sector, OPEC
Article from: OGEL 2 (2003), in OGEL Profiles
Introduction
If one tries to deal with truly ‘international’ energy law, then OPEC is the international organisation with the greatest impact on the oil sector, but also with influence on energy and energy-related environmental questions, and not only on production and trade, but also on investment. OPEC countries currently control about 75 per cent of the world’s oil reserves and 40 per cent of oil production.[1] What is more, most of low-cost oil is produced by OPEC countries. This means that a prolonged slump in prices will tend to enhance these market shares.[2] High-cost producers also ...