Iraq News Now

Thamir Ghadhban has put another mark on the Oil Ministry under his leadership, consolidating all fuel marketing under the State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO), and moving around senior operational leaders in two Nov. 11 ministerial orders shared with Iraq Oil Report and confirmed as authentic.

Ghadhban, a nonpartisan technocrat who is also deputy prime minister for energy affairs, has said he intends to streamline an historically slow bureaucracy. He has largely remained unscathed by the anti-government protests that began Oct. 1 but is forced to manage the crucial oil sector amidst continued unsubstantiated accusations of corruption and pressure from political parties.

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