TEHRAN (Iran News) – The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in its 181st meeting in Vienna on Thursday paid tribute to Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh for his long-lasting contribution to the organization and the oil market.
As Shana reported, the 181st meeting of the OPEC conference was chaired by Angola’s Minister of Mineral Resources and Petroleum Diamantino Pedro Azevedo, via videoconference.
This was the last OPEC meeting in which Zanganeh would attend as Iran’s Oil Minister.
“I would like to begin by congratulating our esteemed colleague, His Excellency Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, who will be taking a bow from his post as Minister of Petroleum for the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Azevedo said in his opening speech.
“You have provided noble leadership, wise counsel, and technical knowledge to the OPEC Conference for many years, and have been instrumental in our organization’s many achievements,” he continued.
The official went on to say that OPEC has benefited immensely from the Iranian minister’s leadership and vital contributions to the declaration of cooperation from the very beginning in 2016, and notably in April 2020 when the participating countries reacted decisively to the global collapse of oil demand resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As the longest-serving OPEC minister, your wisdom and experience will be deeply missed. It has been an immense pleasure to work with you, and I wish you and your family good fortune in the years to come,” the conference chair stated.
Azevedo further underlined the significant role that the production cut pact has played in the balancing of the oil market over the past two years and said: “Today begins the third month of the step-by-step upward production adjustments the participating countries agreed to undertake at the start of April. The market continues to welcome these prudent and forward-looking steps to support sustainable stability, which in turn provide crucial backing for the economic recovery. We will continue to remain proactive and vigilant in our actions on the back of our commitments and the success of the widely acclaimed Declaration of Cooperation.”
