Iraq turns to private operator to lift Ajeel field gas and crude output

Iraq taps private sector player to double a key gas field’s output: Iraqi state-run North Oil Company tapped Iraqi private sector outfit Kar Electrical Power Production Trading (KEPPT) to develop and operate the Ajeel oil and gas field in Saladin province for a period of 25 years. Under the contract, KEPPT will work on raising Ajeel’s gas production from 135 mn to 300 mn standard cubic feet a day (mmscf/d) and crude output from 30k to 40k bbl / d.

IN CONTEXT- Iraq can significantly improve its domestic natural gas production without new discoveries by just cutting on natural gas lost to flaring. The country ranks third in flaring after Iran and Russia as per the World Bank's estimates, losing some 24 bn cubic meters (bcm) to flaring every year — almost four times what it imported from Iran to cover domestic power generation.

Ajeel’s build-out feeds into a broader national push: Baghdad wants to achieve natural gas self-sufficiency by 2030, and an end to flaring by 2029, as per Oil Minister Khudair — a target that the Gharraf and Nassiriyah fields are also racing toward, with 200 mmscf/d of capacity expected by early 2027.

Spot me?

Qatar is looking beyond the spot market to plug in its production shortages: QatarEnergy is looking to secure long-term LNG supply from US producers, with industry sources telling Reuters the global LNG major is in discussions with Venture Global, Cheniere, and Woodside for LNG supply agreements running through 2031. The negotiations mark a doubling down strategy on US cargoes QatarEnergy has been buying to cover commitments to customers following the hit to its Ras Laffan complex.

Getting the gas out is the harder part: QatarEnergy Trading is seeking around 2-3 mn tons of LNG annually through 2031. Two of its 14 LNG trains were damaged in March, taking some 12.8 mtpa of capacity offline for three to five years, equalling around USD 20 bn a year in lost revenue. Force majeure notices have been extended through November, and the remaining supply has struggled to physically reach buyers, relying on tankers already positioned inside the Gulf and, more recently, rare ship-to-ship transfers outside the strait.

Why this matters: Long-term contracting would allow QatarEnergy to make deliveries if repairs in its own production fields and trains take longer, and also hedges against Hormuz disruptions in the year to come. It gives the global supplier the option to lift US cargoes and send them directly to customers from American terminals.

Running to stand still

An 8% y-o-y boost in Tunisia’s exports in the first eight months of 2026 has failed to deliver an improved trade balance for Tunisia, whose trade deficit widened 22% y-o-y during the same period to TND 17.8 bn, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics carried widely by the Tunisian press.

The bill of energy imports was the main driver for the widening trade deficit, which is set to cast its shadow on the country’s fiscal deficit as Fitch predicts a fiscal gap of 6.4% of the GDP by the end of 2026. Despite the headwinds, Fitch affirmed Tunisia credit rating at B- with a stable outlook last week despite the fact that the fiscal gap is almost double the 3.3% median for B rated economies, citing “higher GDP per capita and human development indicators than peers, a diversified economy with an educated workforce and a resilient external position despite external shocks.”

Meanwhile, exports to Egypt (76% increase) and Saudi Arabia (+51%) carried the exports surge, despite shrinking exports to Tunisia’s neighbors Morocco and Algeria.

In formation

The Egypt-Syria Business Council formation is now complete after Egypt’s investment and external trade minister issued a decree last week appointing the members representing Egypt’s side. The appointments include chairman of the Port Said Chamber of Commerce Mohamed Saada as co-chair, Chairman of Taqa Arabia Khaled Abubakr, alongside a number of other private sector executives spanning sectors like construction, real estate, steel, pharma, and the food industries.

This comes almost four months after Syria finalized its own side of the council, with Syrian businessman and CEO of Karim Metal and Mechanical Industries Ghassan Karim tapped as co-chair back then.

REMEMBER- Egyptian capital is yet to make any major commitment in Syria, but the country’s private sector has been warming to reconstruction business prospects in sectors like iron and steel and infrastructure projects, amid diplomatic warming on the governments level, we previously reported.