King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa on 3 June moved energy minister Abdul Hussain Bin Ali Mirza from the hydrocarbons portfolio, naming National Oil and Gas Holding Company (Nogaholding) chief executive Sheikh Mohammed Bin Khalifa Bin Ahmed Al-Khalifa – a member of the royal family – as oil minister in a minor government reshuffle. Under royal Decree 45/2016, Mirza – who had been energy minister since 2006 – was named water and electricity minister. Sheikh Mohammed faces a tough agenda, which includes finding new operators for the onshore Awali oil field, whose expansion plans had stalled well before Occidential Petroleum Corporation and Mubadala Development Corporation announced they were handing back their stakes in the Tatweer joint venture.
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