Mohammad al-Sabban has made a career ensuring an eager market for Saudi Arabia’s oil.
One of his proudest achievements, he says, was watering down language in a planned communique from a Group of Eight energy-ministers’ meeting in Rome a decade ago. The draft advised the club of wealthy countries to cut its dependence on fossil fuel. At the time, oil markets were straining amid big supply disruptions and soaring demand. World capitals were calling for more Saudi oil, not less.
“These specific countries are telling us to increase our production capacity,” says Mr. Sabban, a long-time economist at the Saudi oil ministry. “And at the same time you are pushing your member countries to reduce dependency on our oil.”
In the late 1990s, and again amid the global economic crisis in 2008, Mr. Sabban was crucial in guiding Riyadh oil policy—advising big cuts in production to bolster prices.
This time, things are different, he says. Saudi Arabia shocked the oil world when it convinced its fellow OPEC members late last year to keep pumping, despite the steep oil-price drop. Instead of throttling back again, Saudi Arabia has opened the taps wider, to keep its customers amid new competition—chief among them, U.S. shale producers.