Comprehensive Plans for Iraq's Oil Sector Development: Fields, Refineries, and Distribution Automation

The Ministry of Oil has prepared extensive strategic plans to develop refineries and expand investment in oil and exploratory fields through global partnerships. This coincides with the Ministry's announcement of a comprehensive project for distribution sector automation and digital transformation. A Ministry spokesperson, Salim Al-Rikabi, affirmed that these plans involve developing several oil fields and exploratory blocks with major international companies, including Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Halliburton. He noted these partnerships aim to boost national production and utilize available potential. Al-Rikabi further stated that the Hamrin field is currently undergoing tendering procedures for a specialized international company to conduct comprehensive technical studies confirming its potential and defining future development paths. For the Kifri field (northeast Salah al-Din), focus is on its exploratory well; initial results will assess production capacity, leading to a development phase expected to add approximately 600 million barrels of crude to the country's proven oil reserves. In the downstream industry, Al-Rikabi disclosed plans to expand existing small refineries and add modern complementary units to large refineries. This initiative seeks to enhance refining efficiency and strengthen extraction and distribution infrastructure, aiming to meet local demand. He highlighted that the Ministry has formulated an integrated action plan for digital automation across all distribution sector facets, from main tanks and depots to filling stations. The plan also includes establishing new distribution outlets to ensure smooth oil product flow and improve services for citizens.