Iraq evaluates exploration blocks to optimize gas output

An employee walks on a pipe at the Nahr Bin Omar natural gas field, north of the southern Iraqi port of Basra. Photo: Hussein Faleh/AFP Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi Ministry of Oil is actively assessing its exploration blocks and foreign alliances to maximize domestic gas output. Director of the state-owned Midland Oil Company (MOC), Mohammed Yassin Hassan, told the Iraqi News Agency (INA) that the ministry is focusing on unexploited exploration areas rather than existing resources. The strategic measure seeks to attract multinational corporations to invest in Iraq’s growing natural gas sector. Instead of altering production at current sites, the Oil Ministry is focusing on new exploration regions to identify new deposits. Due to the strong interest in Iraq’s untapped energy potential, multinational energy businesses have already begun contacting the ministry. Iraq’s MOC is actively pursuing partnerships with major US firms, such as ConocoPhillips, to lead gas development projects in important areas in the provinces of Diyala and Anbar. Expanding operations in blocks such as the Akkas and Mansuriya gas fields is critical to Iraq’s long-term strategy for achieving energy independence and providing the necessary fuel for power plants to generate electricity.