{"id":28986,"date":"2026-02-24T17:13:18","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T12:13:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.iq\/?p=28986"},"modified":"2026-02-24T17:13:18","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T12:13:18","slug":"west-qurna-2-chevron-deal-iraq","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/west-qurna-2-chevron-deal-iraq\/","title":{"rendered":"Iraq Signs Preliminary Agreements with Chevron to Manage West Qurna 2 and Develop Southern and Northern Oil Fields"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The West Qurna 2 Chevron Deal was announced in Baghdad as Iraq signed two preliminary agreements with the US energy company to manage and develop several major oil fields. The signing marks a significant shift in Iraq\u2019s oil sector, particularly as the West Qurna 2 field transitions from Russian to US-linked management.<br \/>\nIraq aims to attract more foreign investment to stabilize production and modernize the energy sector, especially after years of disruptions linked to conflict and global market shifts. The agreements come as part of broader reforms introduced by the government of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al Sudani.<\/p>\n<h2>Details of the West Qurna 2 Transfer to Chevron<\/h2>\n<h3>Settlement with Lukoil and Temporary Contract Assignment<\/h3>\n<p>Iraq\u2019s government announced that Basra Oil Company, Chevron, and Russia\u2019s Lukoil signed a tripartite framework agreement to facilitate the transfer of the West Qurna 2 field. The arrangement temporarily assigns the contract to Basra Oil Company until negotiations with Chevron conclude and a new contract is finalized.<br \/>\nLukoil, previously responsible for operating West Qurna 2, reached a settlement with Iraqi authorities resolving outstanding financial entitlements. The settlement takes effect once approved by the Council of Ministers.<\/p>\n<h3>Exclusive Negotiation Rights<\/h3>\n<p>The framework grants Chevron a one year period of exclusive negotiation rights under agreed procedures. West Qurna 2 contributes nearly 12 percent of Iraq\u2019s total crude output, making the transfer strategically important for Iraq\u2019s long term production planning.<\/p>\n<h2>Chevron to Develop Nasiriyah, Balad, and Exploration Blocks<\/h2>\n<h3>Expansion into Dhi Qar and Salah al Din<\/h3>\n<p>A second agreement was signed between Chevron and Iraq\u2019s Dhi Qar Oil Company and North Oil Company. It covers development of the Nasiriyah oil field, four exploratory blocks in Dhi Qar province, and the Balad field in Salah al Din province.<br \/>\nThe Iraqi Prime Minister\u2019s office noted that the agreement modifies and expands earlier arrangements by adding Nasiriyah field development to the partnership.<\/p>\n<h3>Economic and Local Development Impact<\/h3>\n<p>Prime Minister Sudani stated that these agreements support energy sector reforms and are expected to bring economic and social benefits to Dhi Qar and Salah al Din. Iraqi authorities view the deals as contributing to enhanced production capacity and improved operational management.<\/p>\n<h2>US Diplomatic Presence and Strategic Significance<\/h2>\n<h3>Attendance of US Officials<\/h3>\n<p>The signing ceremony was attended by Tom Barrack, identified by the Iraqi government as the US Special Envoy to Iraq, although Washington has not officially confirmed this designation. Also present was US Charg\u00e9 d\u2019Affaires Joshua Harris.<br \/>\nThe US Embassy described the agreements as a major milestone supporting American investment and long term partnerships in Iraq.<\/p>\n<h3>Geopolitical Context<\/h3>\n<p>Iraq previously invited US companies to bid on West Qurna 2 after Lukoil was affected by US sanctions related to the Ukraine conflict. The transition towards US partners reflects Baghdad\u2019s aim to diversify investors and reduce operational risks tied to geopolitical tensions.<\/p>\n<h2>Iraq\u2019s Broader Energy Investment Strategy<\/h2>\n<h3>Shift Toward Profit Sharing<\/h3>\n<p>Iraq is moving from service contracts to profit sharing models to balance interests with international companies and encourage long term investment. Recent deals include partnerships with TotalEnergies and BP totaling around 50 billion USD.<\/p>\n<h3>Why It Matters for Iraq<\/h3>\n<p>The agreements support Iraq\u2019s strategy to modernize its oil sector and secure consistent production, especially as crude exports make up about 90 percent of federal revenues. Strengthening management of major fields such as West Qurna 2 is crucial for fiscal stability and investor confidence.<\/p>\n<h2>Conclusion:<\/h2>\n<p>The preliminary agreements with Chevron mark an important step in Iraq\u2019s oil sector reforms. With major fields transitioning to new management and investment expanding across multiple provinces, Baghdad aims to strengthen production capacity and attract sustainable foreign partnerships in the years ahead.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The West Qurna 2 Chevron Deal was announced in Baghdad as Iraq signed two preliminary agreements with the US energy company to manage and develop several major oil fields. The signing marks a significant shift in Iraq\u2019s oil sector, particularly as the West Qurna 2 field transitions from Russian to US-linked management. Iraq aims to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28987,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"subtitle":"","format":"standard","override":[{"template":"7","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"left-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"topbottom","share_float_style":"share-monocrhome","show_share_counter":"1","show_view_counter":"1","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","show_post_reading_time":"0","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_prev_next_post":"1","show_popup_post":"1","show_comment_section":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"1","show_post_related":"0","show_inline_post_related":"0"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0"},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"jnews_post_split":{"post_split":[{"template":"1","tag":"h2","numbering":"asc","mode":"normal","first":"0","enable_toc":"0","toc_type":"normal"}]},"footnotes":""},"categories":[81],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28986","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28986","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28986"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28986\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28989,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28986\/revisions\/28989"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28987"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28986"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28986"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28986"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}