Iraq’s oil minister in US visit to promote new gas investment opportunities

BAGHDAD – Iraq’s Oil Minister, Hayan Abdul Ghani, announced plans for an upcoming visit to the United States aimed at promoting new investment opportunities in the country’s gas sector. The visit seeks to engage international companies, particularly American firms, to explore potential gas exploration and development in Iraq.

In an interview with Al-Iraqiya News, Abdul Ghani revealed that “the Ministry of Oil intends to refer 10 gas exploration blocks for investment in a new licensing round.” He explained, “The fifth supplementary and sixth licensing rounds included 29 blocks and fields, with contracts completed for 14 of them. There are about 10 remaining gas blocks that have not attracted company bids, and we are preparing to offer them in a new licensing round.”

Abdul Ghani emphasized Iraq’s proactive approach in seeking specialized companies for these investments, stating, “We have a visit to the United States soon for this purpose, as we plan to offer these opportunities to global American companies.”

The minister also outlined ongoing initiatives to boost gas production, including the drilling of an exploratory well in the Al-Anz block with a capacity of 1,000 cubic meters and the launch of the Halfaya gas investment project in Maysan Governorate, which has a capacity of 300 cubic meters. “We hope to launch the gas investment project in the Al-Faiha oil field in Basrah by the end of this year with a capacity of 125 million cubic meters,” he added.

Iraqi and U.S. companies signed a series of agreements on April 18, 2024, to capture natural gas typically flared from Iraq’s oilfields and repurpose it for domestic power generation. This initiative aims to reduce Iraq’s dependence on neighboring Iran for energy supplies. The agreements, formalized in Washington in the presence of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani and U.S. officials, are set to stimulate investment in processing 300 million standard cubic feet per day of natural gas at the Bin Umar oilfield.

On May 11, 2024, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani presided over a ceremony announcing the licenses for the fifth supplementary round and the complete sixth round of oil and gas exploration, which encompasses 29 projects across 12 provinces.

Iraq ranks fifth among Arab nations with the largest natural gas reserves, trailing behind Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. According to an annual report on the top 10 Arab countries with the most substantial gas reserves, Qatar leads with over 842 trillion cubic feet, followed by Saudi Arabia with more than 335 trillion cubic feet, and the United Arab Emirates with over 289 trillion cubic feet.