On April 28, 2026, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced that it will exit the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the broader OPEC+ alliance, effective May 1, 2026. The announcement follows prolonged tension between OPEC and the UAE’s desired energy and production strategy and comes amid heightened disruption in global oil markets resulting from the ongoing conflict in Iran and the Strait of Hormuz.
Background and Market Dynamics
OPEC has historically functioned as a coordinated supply‑management framework, seeking to stabilize oil markets and defend prices through collective production limits and spare capacity management. The UAE was a founding member of OPEC and, as one of its largest producers of oil by volume, has been an important voice in the global oil market for many decades.
