Basra Oil to run Iraq’s West Qurna-2 after Lukoil disruption

Shafaq News- Baghdad

The Iraqi government decided on Tuesday to assign the state-run Basra Oil Company to manage the West Qurna-2 oil field, contracting a consortium of Bonatti and Basra Crescent, as a measure to mitigate the impact of a force majeure declared by Russian energy giant Lukoil Middle East.

According to the letter from Basra Oil Company to the Russian firm, obtained by Shafaq News, the Iraqi Cabinet Decision No. (8) of 2026, dated January 7, 2026, stipulates that Basra Oil Company will assume management for six months, renewable for an additional six months. It further requested Lukoil’s formal response, in line with discussions held during a meeting in Baghdad on January 26, 2026.

Last month, Lukoil moved to sell its overseas assets, including oil fields in Iraq, to a group of US companies, citing restrictions imposed on the company and its subsidiaries.

West Qurna-2, discovered in 1973, is one of Iraq’s largest oil fields, producing 400,000 to 480,000 barrels per day, nearly 10 percent of national output. It holds more than 13 billion barrels of recoverable reserves.

Read more: Russia’s Lukoil turmoil deepens risks for Iraq’s West Qurna-2 oilfield