Riyadh-Washington rift widens: OPEC stops using IEA data

The latest decision taken by OPEC, prompted by Saudi Arabia, further strains ties between Riyadh and Washington. The organisation of oil-producing countries has opted to stop using data from the International Energy Agency (IEA), the body that oversees the energy sector.

The association unanimously backed the move at a meeting chaired by Saudi Arabia and Russia and attended by representatives from Algeria, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kuwait, Nigeria, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela. According to Al Arab, the decision is largely symbolic, as OPEC can always pick and choose the data it uses from six outside sources when forming its opinion on the balance of supply and demand in the oil market.

On the other hand, the move signals growing dissatisfaction with what the oil group sees as the International Energy Agency's bias towards the United States, its largest member and main financier. "The International Energy Agency suffers from a problem of lack of independence, which translates into a technical problem related to the assessment," a source involved in the decision told Reuters.

Another person linked to OPEC went so far as to describe the situation as a "cold war" and blamed the IEA for triggering it. The International Energy Agency, for its part, claimed that its data analysis was politically neutral.

"The IEA strives to provide an unbiased and independent view of oil market fundamentals. Political considerations have never been a factor in the way the agency assesses market expectations," explains the body set up in 1974 to help industrialised countries deal with the oil crisis. The IEA has 31 industrialised member states and advises Western governments on energy policy.

But this is not the first disagreement between OPEC and the IEA. Coinciding with the last UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, an IEA report stressed that if the world is to commit to achieving zero emissions by 2050, new investments in oil and gas projects should not be financed. Some OPEC members criticised these comments, with UAE Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei calling on the IEA to be "more realistic" and not spread misleading information.

With this latest decision, OPEC has reiterated its stance since the war in Ukraine began, ignoring Western calls for increased oil production. Several countries, including the United States, have called for an increase in oil production in an attempt to lower oil prices. However, OPEC, of which Russia is a member, has ignored Western demands, causing a rift between Saudi Arabia and the US.

Riyadh's stance on this issue is in line with US President Joe Biden's stated foreign policy in the Middle East. Washington has not raised Gulf concerns about Iran at the Vienna nuclear talks.

The US has also stopped supporting the Saudi-led coalition's offensive operations in Yemen and has imposed conditions on US arms sales to the Gulf states. For these reasons, there has also been a cooling of relations between the United States and the United Arab Emirates.

On the other hand, as Al Arab notes, the US leader has yet to deal directly with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Americas Coordinator: José Antonio Sierra