Quitting OPEC the week of one of its most intensely watched meetings was not meant to be a slap in the face to the organization, nor a statement against geopolitical rival Saudi Arabia, Qatar’s energy minister said Wednesday. Receive daily email alerts, subscriber notes & personalize your experience. Register Now Rather, the Gulf sheikhdom’s surprise exit effective January — announced Monday — had more to do with Qatar focusing on its gas potential and acknowledging its minnow status within crude producer bloc, newly appointed energy minister Saad Sherida al-Kaabi told reporters in Vienna, where he is set to attend his first, and last, OPEC meeting. “We are small in OPEC,” Kaabi said, referring to Qatar’s approximately 600,000 b/d of crude production. “We don’t have […]