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Energy

Oil Ministry slashes upstream spending for 2026

Urgent austerity plan aims to cut $1.4 billion from oil field budgets nationwide in 2026 without affecting production — a warning sign of fiscal trouble for Iraq.
Oil Minister Hayyan Abdulghani (center left) and Deputy Oil Minister for Upstream Bassim Mohammed Khdair (center right) meet with Zaid Elyaseri (far left), the president of BP Iraq, in Baghdad on Jan. 26, 2026, to discuss the company's upstream plans and project expenses. (Photo credit: Oil Ministry)

SOC takes Oxy stake in Zubair

South Oil Company takes the largest role to date for a state owned company in a technical service contract after Occidental Petroleum's exit.

KRG keeps producers waiting for pay

The autonomous Kurdistan region is struggling to keep its promises to IOCs, owing two months of payments to most oil producers in the region.

Q&A: Senior Deputy Oil Minister Fayadh Nema

The second most senior Iraqi oil official talks about plans to keep up production during a financial squeeze, and the terms for delivering crude to a Kurdish refinery, Ceyhan and Iran.

Baghdad-Erbil export deal moves forward

The KRG has begun an oil transfer to the federal government's storage tanks in Turkey after political leaders finalized details for temporary export cooperation.