The 2018 OPEC World Oil Outlook (WOO) was launched today in Algiers, Algeria. First published in 2007, the WOO offers a thorough review and assessment of the medium- and long-term prospects to 2040 for the global oil industry, as well as analysis of various sensitivities that have the potential to impact the petroleum industry in the years ahead.

In launching the WOO, HE Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, OPEC Secretary General said that the past year had been a historic one for the Organization, as well as the global oil industry, with the historic ‘Declaration of Cooperation’ “helping accelerate the return of balance to the global oil market, bringing more optimism to the industry, which in turn, has had a positive effect in the global economy and trade worldwide.”

He added that “the importance of these recent developments, specifically in terms of helping achieve sustainable market stability, is clearly vital across all timeframes,” which is evidenced in the analysis provided in the WOO 2018.

This year’s publication, the 12th edition, presented by Dr Ayed Al Qahtani, Director of Research Division, OPEC, highlights the industry’s various linkages, and considers developments in areas such as the global economy, energy demand, oil supply and demand, both in the upstream and downstream, policy and technology developments, and environment and sustainable development concerns. This all helps provide the framework for the WOO’s Reference Case, including breakdowns by region, sector and timeframe.

This year’s WOO launch, alongside the 10th Meeting of the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC), is part of the celebrations of the 2nd Anniversary of the seminal Algiers meeting (the 170th (Extraordinary) Meeting of the OPEC Conference) that took place on 28 September, 2016.

It is important to stress that the WOO is not about making predictions. The Outlook should be viewed as a valuable and informative reference tool, one that underscores the Organization’s commitment to data transparency, and to the enhancement of dialogue and cooperation as a means to help secure a sound and stable oil industry.

About OPEC

In accordance with its Statute, the mission of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is to coordinate and unify the petroleum policies of its Member Countries and ensure the stabilization of oil markets in order to secure an efficient, economic and regular supply of petroleum to consumers, a steady income to producers a fair return on capital for those investing in the petroleum industry.