Shafaq News- Kirkuk
British energy company BP has withdrawn several foreign employees from oil field development projects in Iraq’s Kirkuk province as a precaution amid rising regional security tensions, sources at the state-run North Oil Company (NOC) revealed on Monday.
The sources told Shafaq News that BP informed Iraq’s Oil Ministry and the NOC of its decision to pull out foreign personnel working within technical and advisory teams supporting the development of Kirkuk’s oil fields —including Kirkuk, Bai Hassan, Jambur, and Khabbaz, some of Iraq’s most significant and oldest producing reservoirs.
BP is cooperating with the North Oil Company on a program aimed at modernizing several oil fields in Kirkuk province, improving infrastructure for production and transport, and increasing output from reservoirs. According to the sources, NOC currently produces around 325,000 barrels per day from fields under its management in Kirkuk and nearby areas.
Speaking with our agency, oil expert Ali Khalil explained that the withdrawal of foreign staff does not signal a suspension of the project but may slow technical tasks requiring direct supervision from international specialists, particularly advanced geological studies and reservoir development programs. He added that international companies often adopt precautionary measures during periods of heightened security risk to protect personnel and reduce operational exposure.
The move follows heightened regional tensions after coordinated US and Israeli strikes on sites inside Iran, which prompted Tehran to launch missile and drone attacks on Israel and US military bases in the region, including Iraq, where Iran-aligned armed factions have launched attacks on American forces.
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Earlier this month, more than 100 BP employees —out of roughly 650 staff working with the company— departed for Kuwait due to unstable security conditions. Experts from Chinese companies operating in oil fields in Basra province also left the area under similar circumstances.