As an independent Iraqi politician he was the former Electricity Minister and member of the Federal Energy Council in the Government of Adil Abdul-Mahdi between 2018-2020. Prior to this, he was the founding director of the Iraq Energy Institute, a think tank producing scholarship and analysis on current, historic and future energy, economy and technology trends in Iraq, as well as organizing high-level fora on energy reform in Iraq and the region.
A frequent commentator on Iraq’s energy strategic policies and an advocate of sector-wide reforms, Al-Khatteeb is currently a non-resident Distinguished Fellow at the Center on Global Energy Policy (Columbia University–SIPA.), Honorary Professor at the University of Exeter, former foreign policy fellow at Brookings, and has written articles and published reports for a range of publications include The New York Times, Harvard University, Columbia University, CNN, MEES, the Petroleum-Economist and The National among others.
Previously, he served as honorary advisor to the Federal Parliament of Iraq on Energy and Economy. Between 2014 and 2016
Al-Khatteeb has held several longstanding positions on energy in Iraq and the region, being an outspoken advocate of modern gas to power strategies, eliminating gas flaring and providing feedstock for power and linked industries, particularly in Iraq.