JAKARTA, Indonesia (CNN) -- Indonesia will withdraw from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries at the end of the year, the country's energy minister told foreign journalists Wednesday.
Indonesia has become a net importer of oil due to declining production levels.
Purnomo Yusgiantoro said the move follows declining oil production levels in Indonesia that have left the country a net importer of oil.
"In the future, if our production (comes) back again to the level that gives us a status as a net oil exporter, then I think we can go back to OPEC again," he said. "But today we decided that we are pulling out of OPEC."
It was not immediately clear what effect Indonesia's decision will have on global oil prices. However the move was not unexpected.
Indonesia, which joined OPEC in 1962, is the only southeast Asian country in the 13-nation oil cartel. Oil production there has steadily decreased in the last decade because of disappointing exploration efforts and declining production, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Since 1996, total production has dropped by 32 percent. The country's current output quota for crude oil as set by OPEC is 1.45 million barrels a day -- well above its production capacity. In 2006, Indonesia imported more oil than it exported.
CNN's Kathy Quiano contributed to this report
From the Blogs: 
Sit tight, we're getting to the good stuff
