Oil & Gas ‘It’s costing huge sums’ – Iraq may stop buying Iranian gas By Nadim Kawach January 20, 2025, 1:37 PM Reuters/Thaier Al-Sudani Iraq's oil minister, Hayan Abdel Ghani, says the country is making headway in plans to tap its gas resources and gradually end the long-standing practice of flaring Supplies often disrupted Iraq due to increase production Flaring of gas gradually ending Iraq may stop importing natural gas from its neighbour Iran when projects to develop the country’s unexploited gas resources are complete, the country’s oil minister has hinted. Hayan Abdel Ghani told the official Iraqi news agency that the bill for Iranian gas imports was sapping Iraq’s coffers, and the Iranian supplies were no longer secure, as they were consistently disrupted. Gas production in Iraq is due to increase by nearly 190 million cubic feet a day (mcf/d) in 2025 after two gas projects in the southern oil hub of Basra add 140 mcf/d, while 50 mcf/d will also be produced by TotalEnergies of France after an emergency request by Baghdad. A 1,000 megawatt power station can be powered by 190 mcf/d. Iraq breaks ground on first facility to stop gas flaring Iraq and Halliburton near deal to up oilfield output by 500% Iraq turns to Turkmenistan to plug Iranian gas gap Abdel Ghani said Iraq, Opec’s second-largest oil producer, was making headway in plans to tap its gas resources and gradually end the long-standing practice of flaring the gas as a by-product of the oil it produces. He said that 67 percent of gas extracted was now used productively, up from 53 percent three years ago. “Iraq is importing gas from our Iranian neighbours, and such supplies are costing the state huge sums of money,” the minister said. “Besides, such supplies are not stable and would not continue all the time owing to the circumstances in Iran, which has sometimes reduced supplies or stopped them. This cannot continue forever, because it is affecting electricity generation in Iraq.” Abdel Ghani said TotalEnergies would pump 50 mcf/d in emergency supplies this year. He said that under a $27 billion deal signed in 2023, the French energy company agreed to produce 600 mcf/d, but gas projects normally take several years to complete. The minister said those two projects, NGL1 and NGL2, were undertaken by Basra Gas Company, which was created in 2013 as a 25-year joint venture owned 51 percent by Iraq, 44 percent by Shell and 5 percent by Mitsubishi Corporation of Japan. In March 2024, Iraq and Iran signed a five-year deal for the supply of 50 mcf/d of gas, replacing an old contract under which supplies were disrupted many times before they came to a standstill in late November, after demand in Iran outstripped production. Mohammed Al-Sudani, the Iraqi prime minister, had said In September 2023 that Baghdad would eventually halt gas imports from Iran. The Iraqi oil ministry said in 2022 that gas imports from Iran had cost Baghdad nearly $4.5 billion a year over the previous decade. Iraq has complained that Iranian gas supply disruptions are playing havoc with its electricity network, as power plants are often forced to shut. The Arab Energy Organization, based in Kuwait, says Iraq’s gas deposits are estimated at around 3.5 trillion cubic metres. However, they have largely remained untapped because of low investment.