Oil Minister receives Secretary General of OAPEC

Minister of Oil His Excellency Shaikh Mohammed bin Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa received on July 20 His Excellency Abbas Ali Al-Naqi Secretary General of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) in his office at the National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA). Present at the meeting were Dr. Ahmed Ali Al Sharyan, the NOGA General Secretary and Mr. Ali Abdul Jabar Al Sawad, General Manager, Strategies and Planning.

The Minister praised the efforts of the Secretary-General and the OAPEC General Secretariat in promoting Arab success. He praised the active role played by OAPEC in organising regional and international events, and its increased presence and vital contribution in realising the founding goals of the organization at international forums.

The Minister discussed with the OAPEC leader a number of current issues, including studies carried out by the OAPEC General Secretariat and events organized by or supported by it as well as follow-up reports on environment and climate change. They also discussed new OAPEC supported projects in the region, possible ways of cooperation in joint projects and petroleum investments as well as various oil sector programmes to promote oil sector in Arab countries.

The OAPEC Secretary-General congratulated H.E. Shaikh Mohammed for his appointment as Oil Minister, and wished him success in all his efforts and contributions towards effective cooperation with Oil and Energy Ministers from Member States in order to achieve the founding goals of OAPEC. He said he hoped to see more cooperation among Arab countries in various petroleum industry undertakings.

Founded in 1968, OAPEC has as members ten petroleum exporting Arab countries. Bahrain became an OAPEC member in 1970. The organization aims to promote cooperation among member countries in supporting and strengthening the Arab petroleum industry, to share experiences and information and take advantage of the resources of member countries and use their potential to create a range of joint ventures in the vibrant industry.