Change in operator could spur new activity at the oil field, which has been offline since 2023 after a steady production decline.
Iraq's most prolific oil field temporarily lost about 120,000 bpd of production after 60 wells were taken offline in response to a storage tank fire.
A compromise measure to pay Kurdistan's oil contractors and unlock Iraq's northern oil export route has met major political opposition.
A temporary but dramatic drop in output at Iraq's most prolific oil field underscores the challenges of fighting natural reservoir decline and maintaining production.
Steep reduction at Rumaila brought Iraq's December production average to its lowest level in 18 months as Iraq continues to restrain output in an effort to meet OPEC-plus expectations.
A long-sought deal is getting high-level political attention, and some officials expect to clinch an initial contract in January.
OPEC-plus dynamics and the ongoing outage of Iraq's northern export pipeline continue to limit Iraqi oil exports, though revenues were steady year-on-year.
Iraq has been transferring large volumes of high-sulfur fuel oil to Iranian traders in a deal to help resolve energy import debts.
Maintenance operations at Iraq's largest fields are bringing production down as the Oil Ministry continues to cut amidst OPEC-plus pressure.
The Karkh Court of Appeals has denied an Oil Ministry appeal and reversed a series of 2022 rulings that declared several KRG oil contracts void.
