Many oil producing nations realized that their countries could become wealthy if they controlled the price of oil. This shifting of powers from the multinational oil companies to the oil producing countries created OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) which is the present power broker for crude oil.

OPEC members include Algeria, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. They produce about 40% of the world's oil and hold more than 77% of the world's proven oil reserves. These 11 countries act as a voting block to control the supply of oil, which controls the price of oil.

Today, many nations are trying to reduce their dependence on crude oil. However, the demand is still high as we look for sources of renewable energy like hydroelectric and solar.