Iraq Business News brings you the latest information on developments and opportunities in the oil and gas industry in Iraq.
Iraq's Majnoon oilfield should be ready to produce 175,000 barrels per day (bpd) by the end of 2012, triggering cost recovery and service fee payments. Iraqi officials say the field could even reach that output, from current production of around 54,000 bpd, by August, depending on pipeline infrastructure, completed wells and also visa delays for […]
Russia’s LUKoil is set to become the only foreign operator of the West Qurna-2 oil project in Iraq after its partner, the Norwegian company Statoil, asked Iraq's oil ministry for permission to sell its stake, according to The Voice of Russia. The Iraqi Oil Ministry has reportedly approved the deal, which would give LUKoil a […]
Iran will begin production at the Yadavaran oilfield, which it shares with Iraq, by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (which ends on March 20), according to ISNA news agency. The oilfield is estimated to hold around 12 billion barrels of in-situ crude oil, along with 12.5 trillion cubic feet of associated gases, […]
Exports of crude oil from northern Iraq via the Turkish port of Ceyhan (pictured) have resumed on Monday after a three-day halt resulting from sabotage to the pipeline network in Turkey, according to Bloomberg. Ziad Ahmad al-Obaidi, an official from the North Oil Company said the initial rate was 400,000 barrels to 500,000 bpd. Iraqi […]
Last year the oil-rich state of Basra announced it wanted more independence from Baghdad. This year it changed its mind. Decision makers say the timing is wrong, critics say Baghdad put locals under pressure, according to this article from NIQASH. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views […]
Bloomberg reports that BP will start drilling exploratory wells at the Risha natural gas deposit in Jordan, near the border with Iraq, in the coming weeks. Jordanian Energy Ministry spokesman Fayez Abu Gaoud told the agency, “if it is proven that the volume of gas in the field is feasible for commercial purposes, the development […]
In its latest corporate update, Gulfsands Petroleum included the following statement on its Iraqi operations: Gulfsands signed a Memorandum of Understanding in January 2005 with the Ministry of Oil in Iraq for the Maysan Gas Project in Southern Iraq, following completion of a feasibility study on the project, and is negotiating details of a definitive […]
There has been a welcome outbreak of pragmatism in Iraq in recent days. While the fact that ExxonMobil will apparently be allowed to take part in the auction for the fourth round oil licences was not entirely unexpected, some will see it as a climb down on the part of Baghdad. Others, such as Hess […]
Iraq’s legislation doesn’t prevent oil companies from signing deals with the central government in Baghdad and with the KRG, as ExxonMobil has done, said Adnan al-Janabi, chairman of Iraq’s Oil and Energy Committee. Speaking on the sidelines of an oil conference in London, he added, "there are no blacklists in parliament". “With or without the […]
Iraq plans to ship 17 cargoes of Basrah Light crude oil from the Persian Gulf in the first half of February, according to a loading program obtained by Bloomberg. This would be two cargoes more than in the second half of January. A total of 28.06 million barrels, or 1.87 million barrels a day, will be […]
The World Refining Association (WRA) today announced the return of Middle East Downstream Week (MEDW) 2012. The conference will highlight the significant benefits that can be achieved in the downstream industry through diversification strategies, integrations plans and key business improvements during times of financial unrest where crude is priced at US$100 per barrel. To be […]
Dow Jones reports that the gas capture project with Shell and Mitsubishi in Southern Iraq is expected to start production this year. The head of the South Gas Company, Ali Hussein Khudhier, told the news agency that they expect to produce 50 Mcfd of gas this year. He added that the floating LNG plant and […]
