Archive | Iraq Oil & Gas News

Iraq Business News brings you the latest information on developments and opportunities in the oil and gas industry in Iraq.

Shell to Replace Exxon at West Qurna 1?

According to Dow Jones, the Iraqi oil ministry could ask Shell to develop Iraq's supergiant West Qurna Phase 1 oil field in southern Iraq, if the government decides to terminate ExxonMobil's contract after it signed a deal to explore for oil in Iraqi Kurdistan. "We have many options," said Abdul Mahdy al-Ameedi, head of the […]

32 Firms Buy Info-Packs for 4th Energy Round

Thirty-two international companies, including oil majors, have so far bought data packs for Iraq's 4th energy bidding round, according to Dow Jones. The Iraqi oil ministry has qualified 46 international companies to take part in the bid round, scheduled for March 7, in which 12 exploration blocks will be auctioned. The purchase of the data […]

WesternZagros Issues 3Q Results

WesternZagros Resources has issued its results for the periods ended September 30, 2011, key highlights, and activities to date. In September 2011, WesternZagros received approval from the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Kurdistan Regional Government to start an extended well test at Sarqala. First oil production from Sarqala-1 was achieved on October 18, 2011, […]

ShaMaran Issues 3Q Results

ShaMaran Petroleum has announced its financial and operating results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2011. Highlights A major oil discovery in the Atrush Block was announced by the Company on April 13, 2011. The Atrush 1 well flowed at rates totalling over 6,393 bopd of 26.5 API oil from three tests […]

Gulf Keystone Updates on Shaikan block

Gulf Keystone provided an update on Monday on its ongoing exploration and appraisal programme for the Shaikan block in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Shaikan is a major discovery with independently audited gross oil-in-place volumes of between 8 billion barrels to 13.4 billion barrels calculated on the P90 to P10 basis with a mean value […]

Time to Keep your Head Down in Iraq

By Gavin Jones, Director of Iraq Business News, and Partner at consultancy firm Upper Quartile. This article was originally published on the Emerging Economics blog. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Last week hundreds of people were arrested all over Iraq in […]

Upper Quartile Runs Seminar on Opportunities in Iraq

In a bid to encourage firms to develop a presence in the Middle Eastern state of Iraq, Upper Quartile, in partnership with Aberdeen City Council’s International Trade and Investment team, held a seminar yesterday in Aberdeen, attracting representatives from around 20 oil and gas service companies interested in the investment opportunities available in Iraq. Over […]

Giant Oil Rig Heads to Hamrin

A large oil rig has arrived in the northern oil fields around Kirkuk to start work on reclaiming old oil wells and drilling new ones, according to AKnews. The wells of the Hamrin mountains were left unused until June this year. The Iraqi Drilling Company announced the arrival of the rig on Thursday, and its […]

Shortage of Gas Stops Petrochemical Industries Company

Work has reportedly stopped at Iraq's Petrochemical Industries Company due to a shortage of natural gas. According to Aswat al-Iraq, the stoppage has caused significant financial losses. The Iraqi ministry of industry said that the company is the base for chemical industry in Iraq. The undersecretary  to the Industry ministry, Maki al-Dairi, called upon Iraqi […]

Iraq a Possible Turkey-Azerbaijan Gas Pipeline Construction Partner

Iraq may participate in the planned new gas pipeline between Azerbaijan and Turkey, according to TrendAz. An adviser to the Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Ministry told the Kurdistan Oil & Gas Conference, "Iraq's participation in this project as a gas producing country is important for us". He said the world has a growing demand […]

Shell Pulls Out of Oil Talks with KRG

The Financial Times reports on Thursday that Shell has pulled out of oil-development talks with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in an effort to protect lucrative investments in southern Iraq,. The newspaper cited people familiar with the discussions as saying Baghdad is seeking to impose a de facto ban on companies operating in Kurdistan. Following […]

Iraq to Act Against ExxonMobil over KRG Contract

In the continuing row over ExxonMobil's contract with the Kurdistan Regional Government, Baghdad has called the deal a violation of the law. Reuters reports that Iraq's government said it would move to end a major contract with ExxonMobil, apparently referring to the company's multi-billion dollar contract with Iraq's oil ministry to develop the 8.7 billion […]