Iraqi Ministry of Oil convenes meeting to draft oil and gas legislation, addressing long-standing disputes

Shafaq News / The Ministry of Oil organized a meeting today, Thursday, for the working team tasked with preparing the draft oil and gas law.

Chaired by the Ministry's Advisor for Administrative, Legal, and Regulatory Affairs, Hamdan Awaijil, the meeting encompassed various officials from oil companies and departments within the Ministry.

In a statement issued today, the Ministry of Oil elucidated that the meeting aims to deliberate on the formulation of the oil and gas law draft and to articulate a national and professional vision that fulfills optimal investment objectives for the oil wealth in service of the public interest.

In early August, PM Mohammed Shia al-Sudani directed the establishment of a ministerial committee to oversee technical dialogues between the Federal Ministry of Oil and the Regional Ministry of Natural Resources.

Additionally, the governors of oil-producing governorates, namely Basra, Maysan, Kirkuk, and Thi Qar, along with the general directors of government-owned oil companies, were invited to engage in ongoing technical dialogues concerning the oil and gas law.

These discussions are expected to be followed by the completion of political dialogues to reach an agreement on presenting the law draft.

The oil and gas law constitutes one of the key points of contention between the federal government and the Kurdistan Region, with both parties having yet to arrive at a resolution throughout the past four parliamentary sessions.

During the current parliamentary session, the political blocs are pinning their hopes on reaching solutions to the prevailing disputes and steering towards understandings that satisfy all parties, ultimately leading to the enactment of the law.