Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Faleh Al-Zaidi held high-level discussions in New York with ExxonMobil Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Darren Woods, exploring expanded upstream partnerships, fresh hydrocarbon exploration ventures, and modernization frameworks across Iraq’s operating oil fields.
According to an official readout released by the Prime Minister’s Media Office, the late-night meeting took place just after midnight Baghdad time on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, on the sidelines of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
The talks centered on broadening bilateral engagement with the American energy giant, focusing on cutting-edge reservoir management, field recovery enhancement, and upstream exploration concessions.
Both sides evaluated mechanisms to optimize crude output and maximize commercial yields from existing producing reservoirs, aligning ExxonMobil’s technical capabilities with Iraq’s strategic imperative to enhance upstream efficiency and secure stable hydrocarbon returns.
Prime Minister Al-Zaidi underscored Iraq’s dedication to deepening strategic cooperation with premier international energy conglomerates, emphasizing the critical value of advanced technology transfers and engineering expertise in transforming the nation’s core industry.
The Prime Minister reiterated that expanding upstream production capacity and refining sovereign resource exploitation remain fundamental pillars of Iraq’s economic agenda, positioning the federal government to attract major foreign direct investment into critical extractive infrastructure despite regional market pressures.