ERBIL, May 7, 2026, 23:03 (UTC+3)
- DNO has restarted limited field work at the Tawke license, but oil production in Iraqi Kurdistan remains shut because of the regional security situation.
- Genel Energy’s Tawke-linked output and free cash flow fell in the first quarter, while ShaMaran said Atrush and Sarsang remain shut in.
- The restart question matters more now because the Iraq-Türkiye pipeline is one of the few outlets left as the wider Iran war disrupts Gulf energy flows.
DNO ASA has restarted limited field work at its Tawke license in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, including well maintenance and an eight-well drilling campaign, but production remains shut after the company halted operations following U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28. Reuters reported DNO did not give a date for when Tawke and Peshkabir production could resume.
The partial restart matters because Kurdistan producers were only beginning to regain access to export routes after a long pipeline dispute. Now the Iran war has put that recovery back under pressure, cutting volumes at fields run or backed by DNO, Genel Energy and ShaMaran Petroleum.
DNO said first-quarter net production across its portfolio averaged 131,700 barrels of oil equivalent per day, or boepd, down 12% from the previous quarter, with lower Kurdistan volumes offset by record North Sea output. Boepd is an industry measure that converts oil and gas production into one oil-based unit.
The Norwegian firm’s Executive Chairman Bijan Mossavar-Rahmani said “Middle East flows” were curtailed and that the North Sea was delivering strongly. DNO reported operating profit of $284 million on revenue of $627 million, and net profit of $51 million for the quarter. DNO ASA
At Tawke, DNO began the year with strong production and brought two new wells onstream early in the quarter before halting production and drilling. Limited operations restarted on April 9, including workovers, or maintenance jobs on existing wells, and preparations to lift output when security and market conditions improve.
Genel, which holds 25% of the Tawke license while DNO holds 75%, said gross production at Tawke fell to 52,800 barrels per day in the first quarter from 77,270 bpd in the fourth quarter. Its working-interest production dropped to 13,200 bpd, and its average sales price was $31 a barrel.
The hit showed up in cash flow. Genel posted a $2 million free cash flow outflow in the quarter, held $222 million in cash at March 31, and said $88 million remained overdue from the Kurdistan Regional Government under local pricing terms, excluding interest. Genel shares closed 3.77% lower in London at 51 pence, MarketScreener data showed.
Security spending is now part of the operating story. Rudaw reported DNO had installed 2.8 km of concrete barriers around facilities in the Tawke license area after earlier drone attacks, a reminder that the issue is not only market access but the physical safety of workers and infrastructure.
ShaMaran, a Canada-based peer with interests in the Atrush and Sarsang blocks, said average gross daily oil production from the two fields fell 45% year on year to 35.9 thousand barrels per day in the first quarter, mainly because of a shut-in from the start of March and lower Sarsang output. Chief Executive Garrett Soden said the Iran war had left “most international oil companies shut-in since early March.” ShaMaran Petroleum Corp.
ShaMaran said production at Atrush and Sarsang remained suspended and there was no certainty over the duration. It added that the operator expected Atrush could return to full capacity soon after operations restart, while Sarsang would likely restart at reduced capacity and recover in phases over several months.
But the main risk is that field work resumes faster than exports or security can support. ShaMaran said 2026 operating plans depend on the regional security environment, continuation of the Iraq-Türkiye pipeline export deal with Iraq’s SOMO, completion of payment reconciliation work, and extension or renegotiation of the Iraq-Turkey pipeline agreement before it expires in July 2026.
The wider backdrop is still volatile. Reuters reported last week that the Strait of Hormuz remained closed two months into the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, disrupting a major channel for global oil and gas supplies and adding pressure on alternative export routes such as the Iraq-Türkiye pipeline.
