Iraq Edges Toward Deal on Government

5 May 2006 Talks on forming Iraq’s next government seem to be edging closer toward an agreement on the main portfolios, including the Oil Ministry, and an announcement could be made as early as next week, Iraqi sources said Thursday. Two candidates emerged this week as the strongest candidates for the oil portfolio: former Oil Minister Thamer al-Ghadban, a technocrat who is backed by several parties including some in the…

Iraqi Minister Begins Oil Sector Turnaround

9 August 2006 More than two months after taking over Iraq’s embattled oil sector and pledging to fight corruption, Iraqi Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahristani is taking timid steps to put the ministry back on track. Al-Shahristani’s first move has been to oust directors-general who were appointed on political merit or as a result of pressure from influential politicians. The purge involves about six employees who were brought in as directors…

Chalabi Named Acting Oil Minister in Iraq

29 April 2005 Three months after Iraqis voted in national elections, the first Shiite-led government in Iraq’s modern history has won the support of the elected National Assembly. However, protracted negotiations among political factions and differences within the biggest Shiite bloc mean that the positions of two deputy premiers and five ministers, including the oil portfolio, have yet to be filled. In a sign of the difficult horse-trading since the…

Bahr Al-Uloum Poised For Iraq Oil Job

6 May 2005 Former Iraqi oil minister Ibrahim Bahr al-Uloum is set to make a comeback as the next oil minister, barring any last-minute hitches, after beating Ahmad Chalabi, the deputy prime minister and acting oil minister, as the candidate backed by a Shiite party. The Shiite Al-Fadhila Party, considered close to radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, was allocated the oil job in the ethnic carve-up of portfolios in Iraq’s new…