Reuters reports that Russian energy company Lukoil and its partners have issued a tender for seismic surveys at Iraq’s West Qurna-2 oilfield, according to a statement published on Saturday.

Lukoil, which along with Norway’s Statoil won a contract to develop the field, invited companies to bid for carrying out 3D field seismic surveys at the oilfield, with a deadline of Sept. 26, according to a statement published in the Assabah newspaper.

Lukoil and Statoil signed a 20-year deal to develop the 12.9-billion-barrel West Qurna Phase Two oilfield in southern Iraq, in an auction in December, pledging to boost output to a plateau target of 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd).

Production at West Qurna will hit 120,000 bpd in 2012, a senior executive from Statoil said in April.

(Source: Reuters)