Mutriba Awakens as Kuwait Awards Major SLB Deal

Kuwait Oil Company awards SLB a $1.5B contract to develop the technically challenging Mutriba field and accelerate national production goals

10 Mar 2026

Kuwait is stepping deeper into one of its toughest oil prospects. Kuwait Oil Company has awarded SLB a five-year, $1.5 billion contract to lead development of the Mutriba oil field, a reservoir long known for its technical difficulty. The agreement, announced February 3, 2026, places design, development, and production management under a single operator.

Mutriba is not an easy field to tame. Its deeper reservoirs face extreme pressure, high temperatures, and hydrogen sulfide levels that can reach 40%. Those conditions kept the field mostly dormant for decades after its discovery in 1957.

Commercial production only began in September 2025, marking a cautious first step. Now Kuwait is moving faster, aiming to turn the field into a meaningful contributor to national output. The new contract gives SLB full responsibility for guiding the project from reservoir planning through daily production.

The structure reflects a broader shift across Gulf oil producers. National companies are increasingly consolidating large developments under one integrated partner rather than dividing work among many contractors. The goal is tighter coordination, faster timelines, and fewer operational gaps.

SLB executive vice president Steve Gassen said the company will take end to end responsibility to support safe and reliable operations in the challenging reservoir environment. The deal also extends a long partnership between SLB and Kuwait Oil Company. Recently, the services giant secured similar agreements in Saudi Arabia and Oman.

For Kuwait, Mutriba represents more than a single project. Rising domestic demand is pushing the country to develop fields once considered too complex to justify. Success here could strengthen Kuwait’s broader production ambitions.

Investors noticed the shift quickly. Analysts at Stifel and Raymond James both raised price targets for SLB after the announcement, pointing to a growing pipeline of long cycle projects across the Middle East. As US shale activity slows, global oilfield services companies are increasingly focusing their technology and talent on the Gulf.