Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Karim Badawi, led the Egyptian delegation at the Council of Ministers meeting of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), held on December 15 in Kuwait.

The final statement issued by the meeting explained that the member states of the organization signed a decision to restructure it, redraft its establishment agreement, develop its work, and change its name to the Arab Energy Organization (AEO).

The proposed substantive amendments to the agreement will enter into force immediately upon completion of their adoption in accordance with the regulatory procedures of each member state.

OAPEC General Secretariat explained that the decision to restructure the organization, redraft its establishment agreement, develop its work, and change its name was made based on a proposal submitted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The meeting was chaired by Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi, Minister of State for Energy Affairs in Qatar, which chairs the current session of the organization, with the participation of OAPEC Secretary-General, Jamal Essa Al Loughani, and the Ministers of Petroleum and Energy in the Arab member states of the organization.

The Egyptian delegation participating in the meeting included Salah Abdel Kerim, Chairman of the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC); Samir Raslan, Undersecretary of the Ministry for Agreements and Exploration and Egypt’s representative in the Executive Office of the Organization; and Moataz Atef, Undersecretary of the Ministry for the Minister’s Office and Technical Office and Official Spokesperson.