RIYADH: Iraqi Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul-Jabbar said that his country plans to increase its oil production capacity to 8 million barrels of oil per day by 2029, compared to current production of 4.8 million barrels per day, Asharq Business reported.
He said that production capacity could reach 12 million barrels of oil per day.
However he added that current plans do not conflict with the OPEC + agreement to reduce production to maintain the stability of oil markets.
The oil minister said that the gradual increase in production would take place through the country’s existing major oil fields, including the Majnoon, Zubair and Rumaila fields — which together have the ability to double their production.
Abdul-Jabbar said there were plans to increase the capabilities of refineries in Iraq to stop the need for importing fuel.
Iraq is also seeking to increase its production capacity in the natural gas sector to reduce the volume of imports from abroad.
He said that Iraq was targeting an increase in production to a level of between 4 and 5 billion cubic feet by 2025 against current production of 1.5 billion standard cubic feet.
The minister disclosed that a framework agreement had been reached to extend an oil pipeline from Basra to the port of Aqaba in Jordan and that he anticipated the implementation of the agreement to follow within a year.
Iraqi oil minister reveals plans to boost production to 8 million barrrels by 2029
https://arab.news/m32z8
Iraqi oil minister reveals plans to boost production to 8 million barrrels by 2029
- The oil minister said that the gradual increase in production would take place through the country’s existing major oil fields
Lebanese social entrepreneur Omar Itani recognized by Schwab Foundation
- FabricAID co-founder among 21 global recipients recognized for social innovation
DAVOS: Lebanon’s Omar Itani is one of 21 recipients of the Social Entrepreneurs and Innovators of the Year Award by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.
Itani is the co-founder of social enterprise FabricAID, which aims to “eradicate symptoms of poverty” by collecting and sanitizing secondhand clothing before placing items in stores in “extremely marginalized areas,” he told Arab News on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
With prices ranging from $0.25 to $4, the goal is for people to have a “dignified shopping experience” at affordable prices, he added.
FabricAID operates a network of clothing collection bins across key locations in Lebanon and Jordan, allowing people to donate pre-loved items. The garments are cleaned and sorted before being sold through the organization’s stores, while items that cannot be resold due to damage or heavy wear are repurposed for other uses, including corporate merchandise.
Since its launch, FabricAID has sold more than 1 million items, reached 200,000 beneficiaries and is preparing to expand into the Egyptian market.
Amid uncertainty in the Middle East, Itani advised young entrepreneurs to reframe challenges as opportunities.
“In Lebanon and the Arab world, we complain a lot,” he said. Understandably so, as “there are a lot of issues” in the region, resulting in people feeling frustrated and wanting to move away. But, he added, “a good portion of the challenges” facing the Middle East are “great economic and commercial opportunities.”
Over the past year, social innovators raised a combined $970 million in funding and secured a further $89 million in non-cash contributions, according to the Schwab Foundation’s recent report, “Built to Last: Social Innovation in Transition.”
This is particularly significant in an environment of geopolitical uncertainty and at a time when 82 percent report being affected by shrinking resources, triggering delays in program rollout (70 percent) and disruptions to scaling plans (72 percent).
Francois Bonnici, director of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and a member of the World Economic Forum’s Executive Committee, said: “The next decade must move the models of social innovation decisively from the margins to the mainstream, transforming not only markets but mindsets.”
Award recipients take part in a structured three-year engagement with the Schwab Foundation, after which they join its global network as lifelong members. The program connects social entrepreneurs with international peers, collaborative initiatives, and capacity-building support aimed at strengthening and scaling their work.
