Welcome to This Week in Iraq, your one-stop source for all of the most important news on Iraq's energy sector, political developments, security dynamics, and investment climate, curated by the editors of Iraq Oil Report. Click here to sign up and receive this free newsletter in your inbox every week.

Top Energy Stories

Production capacity is set to rise steeply at the Majnoon oil field, and new seismic work could also reveal even more reserves than the already discovered 47 billion barrels. Dhia Shaker al-Luaibi, the director of the field, spoke with Iraq Oil Report about the development of the project, which state-run Basra Oil Company took over in 2018 after Royal Dutch Shell pulled out. In recent years, the field has often produced well below its current capacity of 240,000 barrels per day (bpd) because of OPEC-plus quotas, but the Oil Ministry has big plans for the field — raising production capacity to 400,000 bpd by the end of 2023 by drilling 83 new wells and opening a new processing facility. Read a full transcript of the interview on Iraq Oil Report.

The port of Khor al-Zubair might soon be able to handle some crude oil exports. Built in the 1970s as an industrial and commercial port, it now handles exclusively imports and exports of oil products. The director of the port, Capt. Haidar Fakher Nasser, spoke with Iraq Oil Report about Khor al-Zubair's current capacity and ongoing expansion, including the addition of more loading berths and the dredging of channels to facilitate larger ships. If Khor al-Zubair can indeed handle some crude exports in the future, it might allow Iraq to boost oil production, which is currently capped by infrastructure constraints at Iraq's other export outlets in the Basra Gulf. Read a full transcript of the interview on Iraq Oil Report.

The Karbala refinery has started test operations in anticipation of a ramp-up to its full processing capacity of 140,000 bpd of crude, the Oil Ministry said in a Sept. 25 statement. In an interview with Iraq Oil Report in July, the director of the refinery, Mohammad Fazza Abed, said the first phase of operations will involve processing 84,000 bpd of crude.

IOCs in Iraq are under-reporting their carbon emissions from gas flaring, according to a report by Unearthed:

BP’s share of flaring emissions from Rumaila — based on its participating interest in the field’s operating company of 47.6% — stood at 4.52m tonnes CO2e in 2021. That’s close to double the emissions caused by flaring from the entire UK oil industry the same year. It’s also comparable to the annual emissions of over 970,000 petrol cars.

... BP argues that as it is not technically the operator of Rumaila, it does not have to include Rumaila’s emissions in its annual climate impact reports. The company pointed out to Unearthed that this stance is “in line with standard practice across the oil and gas industry” and follows emissions reporting guidelines drawn up by Ipieca, an industry trade body. If it did count Rumaila, BP’s worldwide flaring emissions for 2021 would be doubled.

Some industry observers argue that the current rules on reporting emissions leave investors with an incomplete picture of a company’s climate impact.

Dominic Watson from the Environmental Defense Fund told Unearthed: “The outdated industry practice of reporting revenue — but not climate pollution — from joint venture assets is no longer acceptable. It’s time that all companies extend their emissions reduction targets, strategies, and reporting to 100% of their production volumes.”

National News

Iran's military operations against opposition groups in Iraqi Kurdistan escalated sharply on Wednesday as it launched three sets of drone and missile attacks deep inside Iraqi territory, killing 14 people and wounding at least 58. Iran had been shelling remote areas along its border with Iraqi Kurdistan since Saturday in retaliation against opposition groups it accuses of supporting anti-government protests inside Iran. Wednesday's attacks struck deeper into in the heart of Erbil and Sulaimaniya provinces, highlighting the risks that Iran's violent repression and upheaval are causing for Iraq. Read the full story on Iraq Oil Report.

Iraqi Parliament legal advisor rules Sadrist MPs' resignations illegal, by Suadad al-Salhy for Middle East Eye:

The resignations of the 73 MPs of the Sadrist bloc were illegal and it was not within the Iraqi parliament speaker’s authority to authorise them, the parliament's legal advisor has ruled.

According to a letter sent to parliament by legal advisor Muhammad al-Ghazi, and seen by Middle East Eye, the MPs’ resignations did not follow the necessary processes, therefore the Sadrists are still MPs.

Parliament needs to conduct technical and legal discussions and put the resignations to a vote, Ghazi says, “because of its impact on the real representation of the House of Representatives”.

Two Sadrist leaders welcomed the news and told MEE that the movement’s return to parliament has become a necessity and inevitable reality, insisting there was no alternative to ending Iraq’s political crisis than this.

Is there a legal route for the Sadrists to return to Parliament? by 1001 Iraqi Analysis:

Following the election of the new deputy speaker Muhsin al-Mandalawi during the September 28 session, Halbusi read out a note from parliament’s legal advisor Muhammad al-Ghizi concerning the validity of the Sadrist resignations from parliament.

The legal note referred to procedural irregularities related to the manner in which the resignation letters were unilaterally approved by Halbusi. It expressed the view that the resignations should have been put to a vote in parliament, based on Ghizi’s interpretation of a constitutional provision. Article 59(2) of the constitution states: “Decisions in the sessions of the Council of Representatives shall be made by a simple majority after quorum is achieved, unless otherwise stipulated.”

... The legal note further bolsters the theory that the Sadrists are actively looking for a face-saving route to return to parliament. Muhammad al-Ghizi was a former Sadrist MP with the Sa’irun bloc who chaired the parliamentary legal committee.

Iraq prepares for anti-government protests in Baghdad, by Mina Aldroubi for The National:

Iraq is preparing for one of its biggest ever demonstrations on Saturday, with security being tightened around Baghdad's fortified Green Zone.

Supporters of powerful cleric Moqtada Al Sadr, known as Sadrists, as well as human rights advocates, journalists and civil society members are expected to take to the streets to vent their anger and frustration over the government's failure to respond to their basic needs.

Commentary and Analysis

The deadly greed of Iraq's elite, by Renad Mansour for Chatham House:

The spasm of direct political violence at the end of August 2022 caught the attention of the world. But its roots lie in less apparent unresolved conflict dynamics in Iraq that are just as deadly to its citizens, and that current stabilization efforts will not improve.

... Structural violence linked to corruption in key sectors harms Iraqis every day.

From 2006 to 2014, for instance, the country lost an estimated $551 billion to corruption. The ruling elite relies on politically sanctioned corruption through an ethno-sectarian power-sharing system – muhasasa – to benefit from Iraq’s wealth, with an annual budget that can reach $100 billion.

This revenue is meant to provide basic public services. But corruption means that Iraqis don’t have enough electricity, many don’t have clean water and most medicine is past its sell-by date. The result contributes to Iraq having one of the lowest life expectancies in the world.

Now is not the time for Iraq to amend its constitution. Safwan Al-Amin and Bilal Wahab write for the Washington Institute for Near East Policy:

Although the country currently lacks the unity and rule of law needed to safely pursue a process as fraught as amending the constitution, there are several alternatives that could get it on the path to systemic reform.

... [I]n today’s polarized climate, some of the constitution’s ambiguities may give lawmakers extra time and space to rehabilitate the constitutional order before attempting to amend the charter itself. This can be achieved by fleshing out the document’s most positive aspects (particularly civil rights) via new legislation or a bill of rights. For example, as difficult as the debate has been over establishing a national hydrocarbons law, passing this constitutionally mandated legislation would still be less onerous than attempting to rethink how the charter envisions federalism and the role of the Kurdistan Region.

Building the institutions stipulated in the constitution must be prioritized as well. The first order of business is establishing a new FSC in accordance with Article 92 (2). Second, to avoid the drastic step of shifting to a presidential system while still heeding the calls for greater accountability, parliament could enact new legislation that empowers the president as the “guarantor of the constitution.” This would be in line with Article 67, which grants the president administrative review powers and prosecutorial authority over constitutional rights.

Sign up

Sign up here to receive This Week in Iraq in your inbox.