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Kurdish Hopes Of Autonomy In New Syria Unravel
...nister Nouri al-Maliki now the frontrunner for the post (MEES, 16 January), Iraqis are experiencing a sense of déjà vu, drawing an uneasy parallel with 2014, when ISIS fighters swept across the country under his watch, seizing Anbar province, Mosul and large swathes of territory. For now, incumbent Pr...
Volume: 68Issue: 23Published at Fri, 23 Jan 2026 -
Maliki to Return as Iraqi PM?
...ndidate. Nouri al-Maliki has emerged as the frontrunner for Iraq’s premiership, potentially returning to a post he held between 2006 and 2014 (see table). Mr Maliki headed the country’s first permanent government after the 2003 US invasion and remains the only politician to have served two terms as prime mi...
Volume: 69Issue: 03Published at Fri, 16 Jan 2026 -
Iraq’s Trembling Currency Poses Fresh Budgeting Challenge
...od and basic goods prompted Iraqis to take their dissatisfaction to the streets, and the new government is wary of further such destabilizing protests. While having no legal remit over the CBI, the PM has replaced governor Mustafa Ghalib, bringing back his predecessor Ali al-‘Alak (2014-2020) on 23...
Volume: 66Issue: 04Published at Fri, 27 Jan 2023 -
Can Iraq Use Gulf Football Tournament To Score GCC Investment Hike?
...urnament comes as the culmination of Washington-backed efforts to improve Iraq’s relations with its Arab neighbors, especially Saudi Arabia, something that is hoped to counterbalance Iran’s influence in the country. This process began in 2014 when former PM Nouri al-Maliki, an ally of Tehran, departed of...
Volume: 66Issue: 02Published at Fri, 13 Jan 2023 -
‘The Opportunities Are Massive’: The Risks & Rewards Of Operating In Libya
...talEnergies-operated Mabruk field has been offline since being badly damaged by Islamist militants in 2014 (MEES, 10 December 2021); North Gialo is a potential 100,000 b/d expansion project for the Waha consortium which groups Total, ConocoPhillips and Hess with NOC. Wazen’s Mr Mejerissi says “There could be...
Volume: 65Issue: 02Published at Fri, 14 Jan 2022 -
Yemen: 2020 Oil Exports Up, But Conflict Remains
...nflict. OIL EXPORTS RISE Given the dire situation, the slow but steady progress of the country’s oil sector remains an anomaly. Current production and exports remain at just a fraction of pre-2011 days when production averaged 300,000-400,000 b/d, and even short of the 127,000 b/d produced in 2014...
Volume: 64Issue: 02Published at Fri, 15 Jan 2021 -
Oman At The Crossroads As New Sultan Takes The Reins
...owing to a record $39.4bn in 2014. At the time, all was well and good: $100/B+ oil filled state coffers, covering additional spending and keeping Oman’s public debt in check (see chart). But once implemented, government handouts are politically difficult to stop. And when oil prices crashed in la...
Volume: 63Issue: 03Published at Fri, 17 Jan 2020 -
Libya Halves 2018 Budget Deficit But Remains Hostage To Oil And Conflict
...ipoli-government’s performance. LIBYA PUBLIC FINANCES (LD BN): DEFICIT AT SIX-YEAR LOW IN 2018 AS OIL REVENUES LEAP 76%* *DATA IS FROM TRIPOLI BASED CENTRAL BANK OF LIBYA. EXCLUDES REVENUE RAISED AND SPENDING BY RIVAL BAIDA-BASED GOVERNMENT WHICH SPENT LD36BN SINCE ITS INCEPTION IN 2014 AN...
Volume: 62Issue: 04Published at Fri, 25 Jan 2019 -
Libya: Sharara Restart Prospects Dim As NOC Demands Overhaul Of Oil Field Security
...vember), saw the highest monthly figure since 2014 as output of 1.20mn b/d, a five-year high, combined with Brent crude prices of over $80/B. However revenue will have dipped substantially for December. Though NOC’s annual estimate implies a figure of around $2bn for the last month of the year, MEES ca...
Volume: 62Issue: 01Published at Fri, 04 Jan 2019 -
‘The New Tunisia’: A Work In Progress
...wn in recent days. Revenue from tourism has collapsed as instability has increased post-revolution. Foreign investment has nosedived. As a net energy importer, Tunisia should in theory have benefited from the fall in oil and gas prices from late 2014. However the collapse in the country’s own pr...
Volume: 61Issue: 03Published at Fri, 19 Jan 2018 -
Iraq: Mosul Offensive Gains Momentum Amid Lingering Failures
...wly-trained army units or those existing prior to 2014 performed well. The bulk of the fighting was performed by the special forces Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) and Interior Ministry federal police. One new problem, as noted by Yahya al-Kubaysi of the Iraqi Center for Strategic Studies in an in...
Volume: 60Issue: 04Published at Fri, 27 Jan 2017 -
Politics Prioritized As Lebanon Advances Bidding Plans
...ismic over its whole offshore, drawing up prospective blocks (though not deciding which to offer), and pre-qualifying firms. But then politics got in the way. In the absence of a president, bidding was repeatedly pushed back (MEES, 4 October 2013) and in the end quietly shelved (MEES, 6 June 2014). Re...
Volume: 60Issue: 04Published at Fri, 27 Jan 2017 -
Iraq And Iran Only Exceeded By Russia In Global Gas Flaring
...rld Bank says 147bcm of gas was flared in 2015, up from 145bcm in 2014. 2016 is likely to see a further rise. Russia remains the world’s largest flaring country with 21.2bcm, followed by Iraq with 16.2bcm, Iran with 12.1bcm, the US with 11.9bcm and Venezuela with 9.3bcm. “The flaring increase is ma...
Volume: 60Issue: 01Published at Fri, 06 Jan 2017 -
Libya: IS Attacks Continue, As Does Uncertainty Over Unity Government
...nflicts, a peace deal has been signed between Jebel Nafusa and Zintan in the west of Libya after 15 months of fighting. Zintani forces, affiliated to the official government in Baida (which in turn is affiliated with the HOR in nearby Tobruk), seized the town in October 2014, causing more than 4,000 people to...
Volume: 59Issue: 03Published at Fri, 22 Jan 2016 -
IS Attacks Again As Baida-Aligned Guards Block Tripoli Crude Shipment
...mpeting authorities. Tripoli-based state oil company National Oil Corporation (NOC) has attempted to ship its first cargo from the Ras Lanuf export terminal since force majeure was declared at the facility in December 2014. Following attacks against the Ras Lanuf and Es Sider terminals by Is...
Volume: 59Issue: 02Published at Fri, 15 Jan 2016 -
Saudi-Iran Fracas Ratchets Up Regional Tension, Oil Output Likely To Rise
...s on fire on 6 January. However, neither the protests nor security crack-down have as yet been on the same scale as in 2011. It was for his alleged role in orchestrating these 2011 Shia protests that Shaikh Nimr was arrested in 2012 and sentenced to death in 2014. REGIONAL SUPPORTERS WEIGH IN...
Volume: 59Issue: 01Published at Fri, 08 Jan 2016 -
Libyan Security From Bad To Worse As IS Trashes Oil Facilities
...r the Es Sider terminal has shipped crude since force majeure was declared on the facilities in December 2014. Force majeure was briefly lifted on the Ras Lanuf terminal on 2 July 2015, but an attempt to lift crude by the Tripoli-based National Oil Corporation (NOC) was blocked by the PFG and the in...
Volume: 59Issue: 01Published at Fri, 08 Jan 2016 -
Ninth-Time Lucky For Cyprus Gas Import Tender?
...illion BTU by 2025. According to the terms of the tender, first gas is to be delivered between 1 January 2016 and 30 June 2017, but that is looking increasingly unlikely and will most likely be revised if an agreement is reached with any of the bidders (MEES, 18 April 2014). ...
Volume: 59Issue: 01Published at Fri, 08 Jan 2016 -
Total, Eni Stick With Cyprus Exploration
...to Israeli waters, but also declared the field a commercial (Israeli) discovery. Nicosia views the announcement as a strong-arm negotiating tactic on the part of the Israelis (MEES, 27 November 2015). Noble and BG are also reportedly close to finalizing a letter of intent signed in June 2014 to su...
Volume: 59Issue: 01Published at Fri, 08 Jan 2016 -
Algeria Shelves Shale In Face Of Protests, Economics
...ale (MEES, 3 October 2014). CONVENTIONAL CHALLENGE Algeria’s keenness for shale always appeared somewhat ill thought out. The country would do better to first focus on more general improvements to the country’s business environment that would facilitate conventional oil and gas exploration and pr...
Volume: 58Issue: 04Published at Fri, 23 Jan 2015