Iraq's Oil Ministry wants output from the Akkas gas field in Anbar province to jump nearly tenfold by 2030, and U.S. companies are moving fast to secure the project. New Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has opened the door to Western energy firms, and Akkas sits close to the Syrian border, adding geopolitical weight to the deal.
Iraq's government wants the Akkas gas field to reach 400 million standard cubic feet a day by 2030, nearly ten times the current output of 43 MMscfd, according to the Oil Ministry. Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi took office on May 16 and has shown openness to new Western energy initiatives, and U.S. firms have positioned themselves to lead the field's development.
Interim target set for 2027
An interim goal of 143 MMscfd should arrive by mid-2027, Mohammed Yassin Hassan, director general of Iraq's Midland Oil Company, said. The existing contract with SLB, formerly Schlumberger, covers six new wells plus a processing facility with 100 MMscfd of capacity. Building on that, the Oil Ministry signed a memorandum of understanding in late July with a consortium of ConocoPhillips, TI Capital, and Novaterra Energy to assess further exploration and development around the Akkas site.
A broader U.S. push across Iraq
The Akkas deal follows 48 agreements signed with U.S. companies during al-Zaidi's first official visit, covering oil and gas field development, energy infrastructure, and a Starlink licence for satellite communications. ConocoPhillips separately agreed to acquire a 42% stake in BP Energy Company of Kirkuk Limited to redevelop five producing oil fields in northern Iraq. TI Capital is also partnering with Chevron on a pipeline from Kirkuk to the Syrian port of Baniyas, targeted at up to 2 million barrels per day.
Why Akkas carries strategic weight
Akkas holds 5.6 trillion cubic feet of proven reserves and sits near Iraq's border with Syria, one point on a triangle of gas fields that also includes Mansuriya near Iran and Siba near Basra. The pipeline plan feeds into a wider strategy that U.S. ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack described as a programme "that will make the Strait of Hormuz an afterthought." A separate agreement signed on August 9 by Syria's new government under Ahmed al-Sharaa ended Russia's control over the Tartus and Baniyas outposts nearby.
Source: Oilprice.com
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