Iraq is participating in the “largest global event” for natural gas affairs in Thailand.
Iraq is participating in the “largest global event” for natural gas affairs in Thailand.
2026-08-23
Shafaq News – Baghdad
A source in the Oil Ministry revealed on Sunday that a representative from Iraq will attend the world’s “biggest” natural gas event next month in Thailand.
The source told Shafaq News Agency that the Undersecretary of the Ministry for Gas Affairs, Izzat Saber Ismail, will participate in the International Natural Gas and Liquefied Natural Gas Exhibition “Gas Tech 2026 ”, in response to an invitation from the American company “Baker Hoes”, which is organizing this exhibition, which is considered “the largest global event for natural gas and liquefied natural gas affairs”.
He noted that the exhibition is scheduled to take place in the Thai capital, Bangkok, next month, with the participation of more than 50,000 people involved in the energy sector and more than 1,000 companies presenting their offerings from 150 countries.
According to the source, the Ministry of Oil is keen to participate in these exhibitions to benefit from them in improving work by adopting the latest methods in the production of gas of all kinds, in addition to reducing emissions and digital transformation in the energy sector, as well as keeping pace with changes in the global gas market.
It is noted that Iraq is among the countries that burn the most gas in the world. The World Bank issued a report in June 2026 on this matter, in which Iraq, along with Russia and Iran, was among the largest contributors to gas flaring globally during the year 2025.
According to World Bank data, the three countries collectively burned about 84 billion cubic meters of gas, representing nearly half of the total amount burned in the world.
Global gas flaring rose for the third consecutive year to 167 billion cubic meters in 2025, the highest level in six years, resulting in gas wastage estimated at around $54 billion.
The report indicated that Russia and Iran were the main drivers of the annual increase in burning operations, while Iraq was among the top three countries contributing most to this phenomenon.
The World Bank indicated that nine countries – Russia, Iran, Iraq, Venezuela, Mexico, Libya, Algeria, Nigeria, and the United States – are responsible for more than 80% of total global gas flaring, despite producing about half of the world’s oil.
shafaq.com
