How the OPEC seminar took place

For centuries, the romantic palace of Vienne Hofburg served as a winter residence of the Habsburg Imperial Dynasty – this week, however, he welcomed Saudi royalty, the energy ministers, the best CEOs and a multitude of analysts and more.

Here are some protruding facts:

Since 1965, Vienna has housed the headquarters of the OPEC secretariat – the administrative backbone of the OPEP Alliance of 12 members of oil producers.

The secretariat is led by a secretary general – currently, the former Kuwai official Haitham al -Ghais, who took office for his first three -year term in 2022 and has since been renewed.

Before the Pandemic COVID-19, the OPEC secretariat was the humble background of the (often) day discussions, high and heated on raw output levels between OPEC producers and their allies, at least twice a year.

The secretarial house is a cavernous building, where journalists are generally relegated to a basement media room. Sometimes, they are allowed in Maraud the curly areas, looking for comments as oil ministers from OPEC countries and their allies – collectively known as OPEC + – arrive.

Despite this, even the most nostalgic OPEC journalists will admit that the group’s seminar has experienced a significant upgrade of the place.

The Palais de Hofburg opened its doors to the delegates and the media from July 9 to 10 for a series of sessions focused on the play of play on the oil market, the investment in hydrocarbons and the transition of green energy. The conference is assisted by invitation and accreditation.

For the OPEC seminar, the Hofburg Palace presented an endless and armed red carpet one of its balloon balloon rooms with high -tech screens that plain the cinematographic narrative of OPEC on the history of oil.

“I am sure that with this event, there are a lot of people who would say:” Damn, why was I there? “” The Saudi prince and the Minister of Energy Abdulaziz Bin Salman, the de facto chief of the OPEC alliance, said during the special remarks at the opening of the conference on Wednesday.

Recognizing the will of the Austrian government to “do everything possible to allow this organization to survive and work and take care of its function, without hindrance by … legal concerns and things like that”, he stressed: “We are here because your country is beautiful, the city is historic and more important, people are welcoming.”

It turned out that the idyllic charm of Hofburg’s sprawl alleys is not up to a megaphone.

On Wednesday at 4:45 p.m. Wednesday, a group of around 30 people, by the CNBC count, had gathered at a respectful distance from the other side of the palace to protest against the OPEC seminar.

A protester briefly driving the songs, who did not want to be identified, said the demonstration supported the besieged Gaza Enclave, which was targeted by an Israeli military reprisals since the Hamas terrorist attacks in October 2023.

“Sitting at the top of abundant oil resources, Arab regimes give sufficient power to stop Israeli expansion and challenge the West. However, they choose to fuel American arms sales, and enrich them with real estate, simultaneously strengthening the borders of Europe,” said an article on social media.

On the ground, the singers of demonstrators called for an oil embargo and the closure of the Hormuz Strait – echoing a threat made by Tehran during his 12 -day war with Israel last month.

Many Arab states – including supporters of Hamas Iran – have expressed their solidarity with the Palestinian cause. CNBC contacted the OPEC secretariat for comments on demonstrations.

OPEC seminar speakers lasted ministers from OPEC countries, their allies, key consumers like India and Turkey, as well as CEOs of the biggest names in the industry, including chiefs of COP,, Total energy,, Shell and Saudi Aramco.

CNBC tried to intercept several of these delegations.

The ministers of Russian heavyweight producers and Iran – who would probably have been invaded by journalists in the mid -level of European and American sanctions – were notably absent.

The Iranian oil minister Mohsen Paknejad, however, said on Wednesday remarks of opening by videoconference, in a speech which included rare political comments. He highlighted the risks that armed escalations pose raw markets, just a few weeks after his country, the third producer of OPEC, was locked in a 12 -day war with Israel.

“This vital and growing industry needs peace to serve its mission to promote prosperity at national, regional and global levels; and to promote cooperation and development in a rapidly evolving and constantly complicated world,” he said, according to a speech reading.

Upon entering the conference, press members cannot be bloody of their enthusiasm: OPEC + – as well as its subset of eight nations which have made voluntary cuts in raw production – have reunited more and more on private videoconference, limiting opportunities for press points.

At the OPEC seminar, the action does not start on the red carpet. Often, switched to the place where the delegations remain, journalists frequently put hotels, hoping for not kept comments while the ministers head for the conference. Emma Graham de CNBC also compared the event to a wedding – no one married, but journalists can again have a good catch -up with their friends who report on the oil market.

Otherwise, most OPEC reports are now done through original scoops and survey of delegates for views and market indicators before – and during – political meetings. The next one must be due on August 3, between the eight members who have gradually (and more and more strongly) unwilling a voluntary drop in production of 2.2 million barrels per day.