Overview of geopolitical hotspots : OPEC

This presentation reviewed the recent history (from 1998) of export volumes and prices of OPEC, oil exporting countries. It summarized cyclical trends in OPEC's behaviour and claims that changes to the current Price Defense Strategy could occur by 2010. The presentation also outlined the production behaviour of different countries in compliance with OPEC agreements. Algeria, Iraq, Venezuela and Nigeria were identified as significant case studies for several reasons, including future production increases from those countries. Two divergent OPEC scenarios were presented, from re-accommodation to a free for all type of policy within the organizational context for the mid-term. The author claims that it is time to review OPEC long-term policy to ensure revenue maximization. A change in OPEC policy is viable because it is possible to achieve comparable revenue with a combination of larger production volumes and more moderate prices. tabs., figs