Haitham al-Ghais
Haitham al-Ghais (Arabic: هيثم الغيص; born October 1969) is a Kuwaiti oil executive who currently serves as the Secretary General of OPEC.
Haitham al-Ghais | |
|---|---|
هيثم الغيص | |
Al-Ghais in 2023 | |
| 29th Secretary General of OPEC | |
| Assumed office 5 July 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Mohammed Barkindo |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 1969 (age 54) Kuwait City, Kuwait |
| Alma mater | University of San Francisco |
From 1991 to 1993, Al-Ghais operated in the Kuwaiti Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 1993, he joined the International Marketing Sector of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC), later serving as its Crude Oil Marketing Representative and leading the company's regional offices in China and the United Kingdom. In 2021, Al-Ghais was appointed as KPC's Deputy Managing Director for International Marketing.
In 2017, Al-Ghais chaired OPEC's first Joint Technical Committee (JTC), continuing to participate in JTC and Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) meetings. In January 2022, he was unanimously appointed to a three-year term as OPEC Secretary-General. Following the 5 July 2022 death of his predecessor, Nigerian politician Mohammed Barkindo, Al-Ghais served as the organization's interim leader ahead of his planned August 2022 start date.
During his term, Al-Ghais has urged member nations to focus international climate negotiations on reducing carbon emissions, rather than prohibiting the extraction and sale of fossil fuels.