Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi issued an order on Wednesday to resume oil operations in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, starting on Thursday.
Al-Zaidi made these statements during a meeting with Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and federal government officials. The group discussed the repercussions of the war in the region as well as strategies for assisting oil corporations working in northern Iraq to resume production as soon as possible, according to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
DNO, a Norwegian oil corporation, said on May 7 that its production in Iraqi Kurdistan will stay paused due to the Middle East’s security situation. The statement came after the company resumed some drilling operations in April.
The company had initially paused production and drilling operations in Iraqi Kurdistan as a precautionary measure after the United States and Israel declared war on Iran on February 28.
According to Reuters, DNO mentioned that it relaunched its previously planned campaign to dig eight wells to boost output rates when production resumes at the Tawke and Peshkabir fields but has not specified a timetable.
DNO, the largest producer in Iraqi Kurdistan, reported a decrease in overall output from northern Iraq in the first quarter of 2026 to 52,800 barrels per day compared to 82,081 barrels per day in 2025.
The Norwegian business controls 75 percent of the Tawke concession, while Genel Energy, based in London, owns the other 25 percent.
The Iraqi cabinet said on Tuesday that it plans to raise its crude oil exports by pipeline from 220,000 barrels per day to 770,000 barrels per day in two stages over the next two and a half months.
The Iraqi government also aims to raise oil shipments via tanker trucks to neighboring nations to 420,000 barrels per day over three phases.
