Abdul Mahdi warns against Iraq’s withdrawal from OPEC: We will lose and there will be an oil glut.
Abdul Mahdi warns against Iraq’s withdrawal from OPEC: We will lose and there will be an oil glut.
2026-06-27
Shafaq News – Baghdad
Former Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi warned on Saturday of the repercussions of Iraq leaving OPEC, calling for an increase in the country’s share of oil production and exports through the organization, given the power it would have in the energy markets.
Abdul Mahdi said in a post on the social networking site Facebook, “We will lose if we leave OPEC, and we will produce more, and others will follow us, and there will be a glut, and prices and resources will decrease.”
He stressed that “OPEC was born in Iraq to regulate markets, competition, and to protect the rights of producers and consumers, so let’s ensure our rights by strengthening the organization, not burying it.”
Former Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi’s warnings came amid widespread controversy and conflicting statements in Iraqi oil and political circles, following official and unofficial hints about the possibility of reconsidering the country’s membership in OPEC.
The spark was ignited by statements from the spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Oil, Salim al-Rikabi, and government sources who hinted at the possibility of studying options outside the framework of the organization or threatened withdrawal, if the production ceilings allocated to Iraq were not modified to match its export capabilities and urgent financial needs.
Despite the Iraqi Oil Ministry’s swift issuance of a firm official statement to rectify the situation, in which it affirmed Baghdad’s full commitment to the organization and categorically denied any intention to withdraw, this contradiction prompted experts and economists – including Abdul Mahdi – to publicly warn of the danger of these proposals.
These positions highlight the extent of the internal pressures facing Iraq in balancing its obligations under the OPEC+ agreements to reduce production (with the aim of maintaining global price stability), and its urgent need to increase its oil exports to finance its public budgets, and the sharp decline in its oil exports due to the disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and the disruption of energy supply chains against the backdrop of the tensions in the region.
shafaq.com
