OREANDA-NEWS. Today, a warm welcome was given to Gabon’s Minister of Petroleum and Hydrocarbons, His Excellency Etienne Dieudonné Ngoubou, during a visit to the Secretariat, a day before his country officially rejoins the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) on 1 July, 2016.

HE Ngoubou met with the Acting OPEC Secretary General, HE Abdalla Salem El-Badri, as well as a number of other Secretariat staff. Discussions focused on the current oil market situation, the Secretariat’s main activities, and the input of Gabon into the Organization.

El-Badri said: “We are very happy to welcome back Gabon into the OPEC group of countries. We look forward to working with the Minister and his colleagues in the coming years. I am also pleased to see that all the countries that had previously left the Organization have now returned.”

Ngoubou said: “Gabon is delighted that it will once again be a member of OPEC after more than 20 years away".