diff --git a/python/obitools3/uri/decode.pyx b/python/obitools3/uri/decode.pyx
index 5720479..75036b3 100644
--- a/python/obitools3/uri/decode.pyx
+++ b/python/obitools3/uri/decode.pyx
@@ -277,7 +277,12 @@ def open_uri(uri,
             iseq = urib
             objclass = bytes
     else:  # TODO update uopen to be able to write? 
-        if not urip.path or urip.path == b'-':
+        if config['obi']['outputformat'] == b'metabaR':
+            if 'metabarprefix' not in config['obi']:
+                raise Exception("Prefix needed when exporting for metabaR (--metabaR-prefix option)")
+            else:
+                file = open(config['obi']['metabarprefix']+'.tab', 'wb')
+        elif not urip.path or urip.path == b'-':
             file = sys.stdout.buffer
         else:
             file = open(urip.path, 'wb')
@@ -299,11 +304,11 @@ def open_uri(uri,
                     format=config["obi"][formatkey]
                 except KeyError:
                     format=None
-                
+                       
         if b'seqtype' in qualifiers:
             seqtype=qualifiers[b'seqtype'][0]
         else:
-            if format == b"ngsfilter" or format == b"tabular":  # TODO discuss
+            if format == b"ngsfilter" or format == b"tabular" or format == b"metabaR":  # TODO discuss
                 seqtype=None
             else:
                 try:
@@ -437,7 +442,7 @@ def open_uri(uri,
             try:
                 na_int_to_0=config["obi"]["na_int_to_0"]
             except KeyError:
-                if format==b"tabular":
+                if format==b"tabular" or format==b"metabaR":
                     na_int_to_0=True
                 else:
                     na_int_to_0=False
@@ -487,6 +492,13 @@ def open_uri(uri,
             except KeyError:
                 only_keys=[]
 
+        if b"metabaR_prefix" in qualifiers:
+            metabaR_prefix = tobytes(qualifiers[b"metabaR_prefix"][0][0])
+        else:
+            try:
+                metabaR_prefix = tobytes(config["obi"]["metabarprefix"])
+            except KeyError:
+                metabaR_prefix=None
 
         if format is not None:
             if seqtype==b"nuc":
@@ -552,6 +564,17 @@ def open_uri(uri,
                                                skip=skip,
                                                only=only,
                                                header=header)
+            elif format==b"metabaR":
+                print(file)
+                objclass = dict
+                if input:
+                    raise NotImplementedError('Input data file format not implemented')
+                else:
+                    iseq = TabWriter(TabFormat(tags=only_keys, header=header, NAString=nastring, sep=sep, NAIntTo0=na_int_to_0, metabaR=True), 
+                                               file,
+                                               skip=skip,
+                                               only=only,
+                                               header=header)
             elif format==b"ngsfilter":
                 objclass = dict
                 if input:
@@ -565,7 +588,7 @@ def open_uri(uri,
                                              skip = skip,
                                              only = only)
                 else:
-                    raise NotImplementedError('Output sequence file format not implemented')
+                    raise NotImplementedError('Output data file format not implemented')
         else:
             if input:
                 iseq, objclass, format = entryIteratorFactory(file,