Iraqi downstream dreams edge closer to reality
Refining and petrochemicals development may finally be gathering momentum
Baghdad has developed an unenviable reputation for a gulf between downstream promises and reality. For some 13 years, successive governments have announced—and often re-announced—an array of greenfield refining projects, yet only a single new facility is under construction. Even that is running more than five years behind schedule. In petchems, majors expressed interest as far back as the early years of last decade, before domestic consumption took priority over feedstock in allocating scarce gas supplies International investors have been unwilling—due to a combination of persistent political instability and oil prices that have never fully recovered from their 2014 slump—to make the multi
Also in this section
13 May 2024
OPEC+ has huge amounts of spare capacity amid a tightening market, but nothing can be taken for granted given unclear economic trajectories and geopolitical unrest
13 May 2024
But optimism about island nation checked by competition around African upstream investment and history of false dawns
10 May 2024
The US’ contentious LNG permitting pause has prompted criticism from CEOs and wildly differing interpretations from politicians
9 May 2024
Pipeline boosts Canada’s oil industry by widening its export options, making it less reliant on US market and bringing Asia into the mix