At a Glance

• Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi met the heads of TotalEnergies and ConocoPhillips to discuss expanding production at the Ibn Omar field in Basra.
• Talks focused on setting timelines to increase oil and associated gas output at the field and others across Iraq.
• The government aims to fully utilize domestic gas resources and end gas imports within the next few years.
• The two executives expressed readiness to intensify efforts to meet agreed production timelines, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.

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Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi met with TotalEnergies Chairman and CEO Patrick Pouyanné and ConocoPhillips President and CEO Andy O’Brien to discuss plans to increase oil and associated gas production at the Ibn Omar field in Basra Governorate. According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office on Sunday, the talks also addressed production timelines at the field and efforts to raise output elsewhere.

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Key Statements

Al-Zaidi emphasized the importance of capturing and utilizing associated gas, citing Iraq’s substantial resources in the sector. He outlined the government’s plans to make fuller use of domestic gas supplies and permanently end gas imports within the next few years.

Pouyanné and O’Brien expressed their willingness to intensify efforts to meet the established timelines for increasing production, the statement said.

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Focus Area: Increasing Domestic Gas Production

Associated gas is produced alongside crude oil. Capturing and processing it can provide fuel for power generation and industry while reducing the need to import gas and limiting the flaring of gas at oil fields.

Iraq has sought to expand domestic gas-processing capacity as it works to meet electricity demand and reduce dependence on imported fuel. Developing resources at fields such as Ibn Omar is part of the broader effort to increase domestic supply, although the Prime Minister’s Office statement did not specify production targets, investment commitments or a detailed implementation schedule.

International Energy Partnerships

TotalEnergies is involved in Iraq’s wider Gas Growth Integrated Project, a multi-energy initiative that includes recovering associated gas from oil fields, developing oil production, constructing a seawater treatment plant and developing solar power capacity. The project is intended to improve energy supplies and support the use of Iraq’s natural resources.

The latest meeting also involved ConocoPhillips, whose chief executive joined discussions on raising production and meeting the proposed timelines. The Prime Minister’s Office did not announce a new contract or disclose specific commitments from either company beyond their stated willingness to intensify efforts.

FYI

The meeting reflects Iraq’s continuing effort to turn its oil and gas resources into a more reliable domestic energy supply. Increasing associated-gas production could help reduce fuel imports and support electricity generation, but the outcome will depend on investment, infrastructure, processing capacity and delivery against production timelines. The government’s goal of ending gas imports within the next few years remains an ambition; the statement did not provide a detailed timetable or quantify how much additional production would be required to achieve it.

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