But lawyers told the Commission that the 40% quota plan, including hefty sanctions on companies in EU countries that did not meet the target, could not be enforced under EU treaties.

BBC: European Union postpones women quota on boards plan

The incentive to cheat grew even stronger as non-OPEC suppliers, especially Russia, grew in importance. (Russia's output has increased by 2m bpd every year for the past three years.) OPEC's current production of around 30m bpd (including Iraq) is well above its official quota of 26m bpd.

ECONOMIST: Pumping all they can? | The