Page 12 - MEOG Week 31 2022

MEOG NEWS IN BRIEF MEOG

POLICY of output upside remaining, and the state is houses Iraq’s parliament, government
quickly running out of output capacity. buildings and foreign embassies.
Kuwait reappoints to bring on supply from the Neutral Zone would take place on Friday in the Green Zone.
He also announced that a large prayer rally
The country also has additional potential
Mohammed al-Fares as oil it shares with Saudi Arabia, but technical the parliament building where some officials
The announcement caused confusion at
difficulties have so far hampered efforts to
minister fully restore output to pre-shutdown levels. said the instructions were for protesters to
Kuwait’s oil sector has been beset by
leave the main chamber and a meeting room,
Mohammed al-Fares retained his role as its political instability, frequent change of but protesters could remain in the building’s
Kuwaiti oil minister following the formation government as well as constant reshuffles at large entrance hall.
of a new government on Aug.1 amid rising the oil ministry and energy institutions. Al-Sadr and his party were winners in
pressure on the country to raise oil supplies as Without political will and stability, the Iraq’s October parliamentary elections but
part of its OPEC+ agreement. country has so far struggled to revive the were unable to muster a majority of support
Fares will be leading the Kuwaiti delegation aging giant Burgan field - the world’s second- to form a government. Al-Sadr’s bloc resigned
in discussions on oil supply at the OPEC+ largest - which is in decline. in June ostensibly in a bid to unblock the
meeting on Aug. 3. S&P GLOBAL political impasse, but the situation has only
The oil minister is expected to hold his deteriorated since then.
position for “another two or three months”, a Sadr supporters told to The al-Sadr bloc’s resignation led to a
source told S&P Global Commodity Insights. pro-Iran bloc, the Coordination Framework,
The development follows the appointment withdraw from parliament becoming the largest in parliament, but still,
on July 15 of the emir’s son Sheikh Ahmad there was no agreement on naming a new
Nawaf al-Sabah as the new Kuwaiti prime Supporters of influential Iraqi Shia leader prime minister, president or cabinet.
minister, easing the political deadlock Muqtada al-Sadr, who have camped Al-Sadr’s followers stormed the parliament
instigated by the dissolution of parliament inside Iraqi’s parliament since Saturday, building on Saturday at his command to
in June. Kuwait plays a significant role in have been instructed to leave the building prevent the Coordination Framework alliance
OPEC+, the alliance of oil exporters headed but to continue their protests outside the from voting in a new government after
by Saudi Arabia and Russia. parliamentary offices. they named Mohammed al-Sudani as the
Separately, on Aug. 1 Kuwaiti Haitham In a tweet, Mohamed Saleh al-Iraqi, a candidate for prime minister.
al-Ghais assumed the role of secretary general senior pro-Sadr loyalist, told hundreds of AL JAZEERA
of OPEC following the demise of Nigerian supporters to leave the parliament building in
politician Mohammed Barkindo in July. the capital, Baghdad, within 72 hours and join Iranian negotiators to head
Kuwait’s parliamentary struggles are fellow Sadrists at an “encampment in front of
detrimental to its plans to raise production and around the building”. back to Vienna
and output capacity in line with other OPEC+ “The pursuit of the sit-in is very significant
producers that are tasked with bringing on because it will solidify your demands,” al-Iraqi The spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign
more supply. said in the tweet on Tuesday, recommending Affairs announced the departure of the
Kuwait produced 2.72 million b/d of oil in that protesters take it in turns to remain at the Iranian negotiating team to Vienna to
June, according to the latest Platts survey. protest site. continue negotiations on lifting the cruel
S&P Global Commodity Insights estimates The call by al-Iraqi means the protesters sanctions against the Iranian nation.
suggest that Kuwait has under 40,000 b/d will remain inside the Green Zone, which According to IRNA’s foreign policy report,

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