Deputy Prime Minister for Oil and Energy Affairs Samr al-Ghazyan was accompanied by the ministers for water resources, electricity, and construction and housing, twelve assistant ministers and ten general-directors, NRT reported.

Arriving on Sunday morning, the delegation visited the city at the request of the acting Kirkuk governor, the report added.

Kirkuk residents have called on the city’s authorities to launch a raft of development projects in the city, which is believed to sit on top of close to 8.7 billion barrels of oil or approximately 30 percent of Iraq’s total oil reserves.

Reporter’s code: 40101