The Middle East is a producer of around a third of the world’s oil, with GCC-member countries, and Iraq being the world’s top suppliers of fossil fuel.
Three of the region’s largest companies with operations in the oil and gas industry are led by women.
Against the backdrop of International Women’s Day, here’s a look at the women making an impact in this industry in the Middle East.
1. Wadha Ahmed Al-Khateeb
Company: Kuwait National Petroleum Company
Title: Deputy CEO Mina Abdulla Refinery
Nationality: KuwaitiAl-Khateeb has been with the Kuwait National Petroleum Company for more than 25 years and assumed her current position in 2019. In the same fiscal year, the company recorded $25 billion in revenues. Al-Khateeb was the first woman to head the Gas Processors Association GCC Chapter. She was a board member for the Kuwait Styrene Company in the fiscal year 2018/19, and she has been the chairperson for the Kuwait Paraxylene Production Company since May 2019. Kuwait’s Mina Abdullah Refinery can produce 270,000 barrels per day and was the second refinery in Kuwait to be registered on the UN’s Clean Development Mechanism. Al-Khateeb ranked 17th on Forbes Middle East’s list of the region’s 50 Most Powerful Businesswomen 2022.
2. Pakinam Kafafi
Company: TAQA Arabia
Title: CEO
Nationality: Egyptian
Kafafi started her career in investment banking, and entered the oil and gas industry in 2003 by joining the Gas & Energy Group, which was acquired by Qalaa Holdings in 2006. She became CEO of TAQA Arabia in 2013. Today, the company has 1.5 million clients, with around 150,000 new clients added to its portfolio over the past year alone. TAQA Arabia recorded a net income of $19.4 million as of Q3 2021 compared to $15.6 million in the same period in 2020. The company doubled its compressed natural gas stations to 32 in 2021, up from 16 in 2020. Kafafi ranked 21st on Forbes Middle East’s list of the region’s 50 Most Powerful Businesswomen 2022.
3. Haifa Al Khaifi
Company: Petroleum Development Oman LLC (PDO); Energy Development Oman (EDO)
Title: Finance Director & Board Secretary; Interim CEO
Nationality: OmaniAl Khaifi leads the Finance Directorate at Oman’s largest oil and gas producer. PDO delivers 70% of Oman’s oil and nearly all of its gas. Al Khaifi is a member of PDO’s Executive Committee and its Oil and Gas Boards, and she chairs its Tender Board and Pension Fund Board of Trustees. She is also the Interim CEO for the newly-formed EDO until the end of Q1 2022. Al Khaifi ranked 39th Forbes Middle East's list of the region's 50 Most Powerful Businesswomen 2022.