Kuwait, Opec’s fourth-largest producer, has formed a new government and appointed Saad Al Barrak as the country’s oil minister to replace Bader Al Mulla.
He was also named minister of state for economic and investment affairs in a government that features 15 ministers, the official Kuna news agency reported on Sunday.
Mr Al Barrak holds the position of deputy prime minister as well, alongside two other deputy prime ministers and a first deputy prime minister.
This is Mr Al Barrak's first foray into government. He was chief executive of Kuwaiti telecoms operator Zain Group from 2002 to 2010 and is also a member of the country’s Supreme Council for Planning and Development as well as vice chairman of The National Fund for Small and Medium Enterprise Development.
He is also involved in the tech industry with several roles. He is the executive director of ILA Group, a holding company that invests in start-ups and early growth companies, is also chairman of Beyond Limits, a joint venture with Caltech, and serves on the board of Red Lambda, a cyber-security company.
Mr Al Barrak is credited with transforming Zain from a small regional company into an international telecoms group with a presence in more than 20 countries.
The appointment comes at a time when Kuwait is planning to boost its production and refining capacity over the next few years.
In November, state-owned Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries said that the first phase of Al Zour refinery had begun commercial operations.
The move will be followed by the second and third phases of the refinery's operations, moving towards full maximum refining capacity, Waleed Al Bader, Kipic chief executive, said at the time.
The facility is designed to process heavy crudes and will have a capacity of 615,000 barrels per day.
Kuwait, which holds about 8 per cent of the world’s oil reserves, produced 2.7 million bpd in 2022, up from 2.42 million bpd a year earlier, according to Opec data.
The country, which is committed to the cuts decided by the Opec+ alliance, is currently producing more than 2.8 million bpd and will reach three million bpd in 2025, the Kuwait Times reported, quoting Ahmad Al-Aidan, chief executive of Kuwait Oil Company.
Mr Aidan added that the company intends to spend about $2.42 billion on oil-related projects over the next five years.
Russia's war in Ukraine has exacerbated a global energy crisis caused by years of underinvestment in new oil and gas projects.
Lack of new investment in the sector could lead to increased oil market volatility, Opec secretary general Haitham Al Ghais said last month.
“Investment is urgent to account for an annual decline rate in production … and despite the urgent need for investment, we have heard disheartening calls to divest from hydrocarbons,” Mr Al Ghais told attendees at the Middle East Petroleum and Gas Conference in Dubai.
On June 4, top crude exporter Saudi Arabia announced a unilateral production cut of a million bpd for July and said that an extension could be possible.
The Opec+ group of 23 oil-producing countries has extended its current production cuts until the end of 2024.
The group has total production curbs of 3.66 million bpd, or about 3.7 per cent of global demand, in place, including a two million bpd reduction agreed on last year and voluntary cuts of 1.66 million bpd announced in April.
Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world’s oil, surged to nearly $140 a barrel in March last year after Russia began its military offensive against Ukraine.
It is currently trading at about $75 a barrel amid economic growth concerns and resilient Russian crude supply.
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Yemen's Bahais and the charges they often face
The Baha'i faith was made known in Yemen in the 19th century, first introduced by an Iranian man named Ali Muhammad Al Shirazi, considered the Herald of the Baha'i faith in 1844.
The Baha'i faith has had a growing number of followers in recent years despite persecution in Yemen and Iran.
Today, some 2,000 Baha'is reside in Yemen, according to Insaf.
"The 24 defendants represented by the House of Justice, which has intelligence outfits from the uS and the UK working to carry out an espionage scheme in Yemen under the guise of religion.. aimed to impant and found the Bahai sect on Yemeni soil by bringing foreign Bahais from abroad and homing them in Yemen," the charge sheet said.
Baha'Ullah, the founder of the Bahai faith, was exiled by the Ottoman Empire in 1868 from Iran to what is now Israel. Now, the Bahai faith's highest governing body, known as the Universal House of Justice, is based in the Israeli city of Haifa, which the Bahais turn towards during prayer.
The Houthis cite this as collective "evidence" of Bahai "links" to Israel - which the Houthis consider their enemy.
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- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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The biog
Favourite film: Motorcycle Dairies, Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday, Kagemusha
Favourite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude
Holiday destination: Sri Lanka
First car: VW Golf
Proudest achievement: Building Robotics Labs at Khalifa University and King’s College London, Daughters
Driverless cars or drones: Driverless Cars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
How England have scored their set-piece goals in Russia
Three Penalties
v Panama, Group Stage (Harry Kane)
v Panama, Group Stage (Kane)
v Colombia, Last 16 (Kane)
Four Corners
v Tunisia, Group Stage (Kane, via John Stones header, from Ashley Young corner)
v Tunisia, Group Stage (Kane, via Harry Maguire header, from Kieran Trippier corner)
v Panama, Group Stage (Stones, header, from Trippier corner)
v Sweden, Quarter-Final (Maguire, header, from Young corner)
One Free-Kick
v Panama, Group Stage (Stones, via Jordan Henderson, Kane header, and Raheem Sterling, from Tripper free-kick)
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
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