The oil-producing countries participating in the Declaration of Cooperation, known as the OPEC+, proved once again that they were united, a cohesive ally and could act quickly to market challenges.

The recent move of OPEC+ to cut its oil production by 2 million barrels per day was adopted unanimously by the 23 participating countries in the DoC at last week’s meeting in Vienna. It will enforce the new cut from November 2022.

According to the new decision, Saudi Arabia, the largest oil producer in OPEC, and the Russian Federation will take the most considerable burden of the adjustment and cut their production by 526,000 bpd each.

Iraq, the second largest oil producer in OPEC, will cut its yield by 220,000 bpd, and the UAE and Kuwait will follow suit with cuts of 160,000 bpd and 135,000 bpd, respectively. The rest will also reduce percentages depending on their production levels.

The OPEC and Non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting held on Oct. 5 took only a few minutes like the earlier meetings, thanks to the wise leadership of its chairman and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman.

The Prince, his colleagues and the ministers had prepared the ground for the agreement adopted for the first time in two years after the largest OPEC+ crude oil production adjustment. In April 2020, it adjusted 9.7 million bpd due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to a massive decrease in world oil demand.

The other important decision taken at Wednesday’s meeting was that the group’s ONOMM would be held every six months instead of every month. However, they could reconvene in between if there was a reason to meet. This approach also shows that OPEC+ has become a strong, cohesive, relaxed ally and an essential player in the world oil market.

The Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee will meet every two months instead of assembling every month as the case before, said a press release issued by the group after the meeting.

Wednesday’s meeting also granted “the JMMC the authority to hold additional meetings, or to request an ONOMM at any time to address market developments if necessary.”

The press release also reiterated the critical importance of participating countries in the DoC abiding by the meeting’s new production levels set for each country.

Finally, OPEC+ has also extended the duration of the DoC until Dec. 31 2023.

Hence, the decisions taken by the 23 DoC countries in October 2022, April and June 2020 were well-informed and well-communicated and provided reassurance to the market that the DoC group is proactive and fully observant of the ever-evolving oil market fundamentals.

The spirit of cooperation has been clearly present in the decisions taken Wednesday and the previous decisions adopted by OPEC+.

By all means, the DoC helped restore balance, stability and confidence to the oil market in 2017-19, following the downturn of 2014-16; it also played a significant role in reviving the oil industry back on track in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. And it could do that again during the current global political crisis.

The DoC has been a platform built on OPEC’s previous cooperative efforts.

By endorsing the Charter of Cooperation in 2019, the group has opened the door for other oil-producing and oil-consuming countries, instilling a platform for the future.

The forward-looking course underpinning the CoC means it is an essential medium for participating countries, helping maintain sustainable oil market stability and evolving a future for oil and all energies in the energy transition.

The oil market’s challenges of sustaining balance and stability require the participation of all stakeholders. It is similar to the challenges of our planet, which require comprehensive solutions. Unfortunately, no single energy source is a panacea. The market will need a cleaner and more efficient technology solution across the energy basket to become truly sustainable.

• Hassan Hafidh is the former Director of PR and information at OPEC. He worked nine years with OPEC. He has worked for 10 years each in Reuters and The Wall Street Journal in Baghdad, reporting on oil and gas in Iraq and the Gulf Region.