Iraq Business News brings you the latest information on developments and opportunities in the oil and gas industry in Iraq.
By John Lee. Shares in Gulf Keystone Petroleum (GKP) have gained around 10 percent this week on rumours of a takeover. Bloomberg reports that, as the world’s biggest oil companies look for untapped fields, the company is sitting on a giant oil field in Iraqi Kurdistan that wouldn’t look out of place in a major’s […]
By John Lee. Reliance Industries Chairman, Mukesh Ambani (pictured), has told reporters that his company is exploring investment opportunities in Iraq. "We are evaluating all opportunities in the Iraqi oil and gas sector. But so far, nothing has been finalised and we will take a call on this -- both the downstream and upstream assets […]
By John Lee. Austrian oil and gas company OMV has said that second-quarter profit dropped 29 percent as production fell in Libya and its gas-trading unit lost money, according to Bloomberg. Chief Executive Officer Gerhard Roiss (pictured) is shifting OMV’s focus to exploration and production, including in Iraqi Kurdistan, while selling assets like gas stations […]
By John Lee. The Ministry of Electricity’s 2013 budget has soared to $14 billion to help it end power outages in the country, reports Azzaman. But the ministry’s spokesperson Musaib Mudaris said the blackouts will continue until the end of the year, by which time output will reach 13,000 megawatts, enough to meet the country’s […]
By John Lee. Iraqi power stations are using nearly 60 million liters of fuel per day, according to a report from Azzaman. The Oil Ministry issued the statistics in response to complaints by the Ministry of Electricity, which has repeatedly blamed lack of fuel for power shortages. Last month Iraq signed a multi-billion deal with […]
By John Lee. Shares in Irish-based explorer Petrel Resources were up as much as 20 percent in early trading on Wednesday following the announcement that the company has agreed to acquire a 20 percent shareholding in Amira Hydrocarbons Wasit B.V. ("Amira"), which is the holder of a 25 per cent carried interest in certain oil […]
By John Lee. Iraq's Ministry of Oil has announced that the long-awaited start of production at the Gharraf [Garraf] oilfield is now scheduled for the end of August. Initial output is expected to be 35,000 barrels per day (bpd). The company previously had a plan to start operations by September of last year, and were […]
By John Lee. Reuters reports that a bomb attack stopped oil flows through the pipeline from Kirkuk to the Turkish port of Ceyhan (pictured) early on Tuesday. Iraqi oil officials said the stoppage started at around 0230 GMT (10:30 p.m. Tuesday EDT). The pipeline has been repeatedly attacked by militants and has also suffered technical […]
On Thursday, Marathon Oil Corp. said it expects to start producing oil from its operations in the Kurdish region of Iraq within the next two years. The company posted an 8.4 percent increase in net income for the second quarter of 2013, according to its quarterly report. According to UPI, the company said it is planning […]
China's largest energy firm, PetroChina, will join ExxonMobil in developing Iraq's giant West Qurna oilfield and is in talks with Lukoil to buy into a second project at the field, according to the South China Morning Post. China is already the top foreign player in Iraq's southern oilfields, and a deal at West Qurna would boost […]
According to The Express Tribune, Iraq’s Kurdistan region is exporting crude oil by truck to an Iranian port for shipping to Asia, using a trade route that is likely to anger both Baghdad and Washington. In a dispute largely over revenue sharing, Kurdistan’s crude exports through a pipeline controlled by the Iraqi central government, dried […]
On Friday, the International Energy Agency warned that oil supply from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries was falling, as it raised its forecast for demand for the exporters group's crude this year. "Continued supply outages in Iraq and Libya…may reduce the group's output in coming months," the IEA said in its monthly oil […]
