NIOC – Iran’s Oil Minister Javad Owji and his Iraqi counterpart Hayan Abdel-Ghani here on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU).

Based on the MoU inked in the presence of Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, the two sides agreed to cooperate in oil, gas, and petrochemical projects.

Owji and Sudani put emphasis on the expansion of bilateral cooperation in the energy sector, urging Iran-Iraq Joint Working Group to follow up the implementation of the recent memorandum through holding regular sessions.

The Iraqi prime minister brought forward proposals to develop joint fields, train human resources, and implement petrochemical projects, which were welcomed by the visiting Iranian oil minister.

Iran’s oil minister also held talks with Iraqi Minister of Electricity Ziad Ali Fadel.

Heading a high-ranking delegation, Owji was officially welcomed by Iraqi Deputy Oil Minister Bassim Mohammed Khudair and Iran’s Ambassador to Baghdad Mohammad-Kazem Al-e Sadeq on Wednesday.

On April 29, Iran’s President Seyyed Ebrahim Raeisi, who met his Iraqi counterpart Abdul Latif Rashid in Tehran, underlined the development of Tehran-Baghdad relations and promotion of their cooperation in infrastructure fields, including water, electricity, gas, and energy sectors.