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Iraq's Majnoon oilfield is targeting production of 175,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2012, a senior Royal Dutch Shell executive said on Monday.

Iraq's largest field is currently pumping at 45,000 boe/d, Shell's Mounir Bouaziz, Vice-President New Business LNG for the Middle East and North Africa, told an industry event.

Shell and Malaysia's Petronas signed a final contract earlier this year to develop the Majnoon oilfield, one of the world's biggest.

"We have already started work at Majnoon...we have already taken over operations," Bouaziz told Reuters on the sidelines.

"The effective (start) date was on March 1."

The eventual production target for the field is 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd).

Shell and Petronas won the rights in an auction held in Baghdad in December for the field in southern Iraq, estimated to hold 12.6 billion barrels of oil.

The 20-year development contract is one of several deals that Iraq has sealed to try to catapult the country to third place from 11th in the league of oil producing nations.

GAS

Shell has not yet reached a final agreement on a natural gas venture around the southern oil hub of Basra, Bouaziz said.

Earlier this month Iraq's oil minister Hussain al-Sharistani said the OPEC member had extended a memorandum of understanding with Shell on the venture, but a final deal would be left to the new government.

Iraq has been working to finalise a multi-billion-dollar joint venture between its South Gas Company, Shell and Mitsubishi, that would capture huge amounts of gas now being wasted and use it in the domestic market or for exports.

Bouaziz said that delays in capturing the flared gas was costing Iraq about $50 a second.

Iraq is losing 1 billion cubic feet per day (cfd) of gas through flaring, mostly from the south, Bouaziz said.

"What they are flaring now is sufficient to produce power generation for a country like Jordan, twice," Bouaziz said.

"People are getting an average of two hours of electricity a day, there are plans to add power generation but that needs fuel...gas is the natural solution."

Bouaziz said that the basic infrastructure was already in place to start capturing the gas being burned.

"But the task to really get it to work, to improve it, to upgrade it and increase the capacity is huge because of a legacy of many, many years of lack of maintenance and underdevelopment," he said.

Bouaziz said Iraq could start exporting gas "very very quickly".

Bouaziz said the construction of Shell's Pearl gas-to-liquids (GTL) project in Qatar is expected to be completed by the end of 2010, with a ramp up in production expected to start in 2011.

"This will take 12 months," he said.

Computer Data Networks (CDN ) - Iraq office, a regional Systems Integrator and ISP is pleased to announce that high speed Fiber Optic connection between Iraq and the rest of the world is now fully operational. In November, Iraq's ITPC and CDN announced signing of the contract under which CDN will operate and market southern portion of Iraq's new DWDM Fiber Optic Network which covers the entire country.  CDN is responsible for handling the southern portion which runs from Baghdad to Basrah and on to borders of Kuwait and Iran.

Following extensive testing and fine-tuning, the Network is now fully operational and is already handling customer traffic. Iraqi Ministry of Communications and CDN believe that the new fiber connection will allow regional operators, carriers and Internet Service Providers to exchange traffic with fast-growing user population of Iraq.

"This new addition to our branches across the region comes just at the right time and the right place" said Mr. Dejan Nikolin, Sr. VP of Sales & Marketing at CDN. "This marks a strategic milestone in CDN's expansion. We consider the opening of our Bahrain office as a step forward in our company's vision to more rapidly and affordably meet the needs of our clientele. We at CDN are confident that our clients will enjoy the quality of the services, products, and solutions we already provide in the other markets across the region."

Mr. Sadeq Shehab, who is in charge of CDN Bahrain  added "With significant experience, resources, and infrastructure, CDN  will offer solutions in the key areas of Data Processing, Telecommunications, Networking, and Security. The Manama office will heighten our profile within the Gulf region, where we foresee significant opportunities for further ICT investment and growth. "

CDN is a regional ICT Systems Integrator and Internet Service Provider headquartered in Kuwait, with offices in Iraq, UAE, Qatar and Bahrain. In addition to ICT solutions, CDN also provides a wide range of Physical Security solutions. 

CDN is a multi-discipline ICT and security company established in 1983 in Kuwait. CDN Bahrain is the latest addition to our network in the region which includes Dubai, Qatar, Iraq and our Head Office in Kuwait. Our expertise includes solutions and professional services in data networking, enterprise-wide IT integration, Telecommunications, Business Software, Voice/Data applications, Information Security, Outsourcing, Physical Security, Professional Services and Consulting. All our people are of high caliber. Our team is composed of software engineers, industry certified design and support engineers, project and program managers, customer relationship managers and domain specialists. With over 60 professionals onboard, CDN delivers effective cross domain ICT & Physical Security Solutions to over one thousand Government and Corporate clients across the region.

With the Iraq election completed, the oil and gas marketplace in Iraq is set to see explosive growth.  The plan is to raise production from c.2 million bbd to approaching 12 million bbd.  Infrastructure is in a parlous state with limited investment over 30 years. The current state owned infrastructure and the services sectors are unable to respond to existing demand and the previous regime’s systematic dismantling of the private sector leaves Iraq with no prospect of increasing capacity quickly. In this situation Iraq needs international private sector partners urgently. 

To bring costs of looking into this massive market into an acceptable range, Upper Quartile will run the second Oil and Gas Trade Mission to Basra and Baghdad between the 2nd and 7th May - " ....... this will reduce costs for individual companies yet allow for maximum exposure to decision makers within government ministries and the private sector, in a safe & secure environment" said Adrian Green today.

If Iraq signs all contracts now on offer, output may approach 12 million barrels per day and lift Iraq to second or third place among global oil producers.   

• Shell and BP have tenders out and further tenders on the way
• BP Rumaila site plan drawn up and about to be contracted
• Schlumberger are negotiating a significant sub contract
• Baker Hughes are having a site built in Rumaila
• Shell have tendered for a number of services in Majnoon
• ENI, Shell, BP, and other IOC planning team members are making weekly visits in and around Basra
• One IOC has office and accommodation base partly located in downtown Basra

Contracts on offer will push Iraq's oil services market to $8 billion by 2014.   Capital spending on oilfield services in 2011 alone is estimated to be five times that of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait combined. 

Contact Adrian Green on [email protected]

BEIJING, 05 March 2010 (Reuters)

China National Petroleum Company (CNPC) will start work on the Iraqi Halfaya project in the second half of this year, Jiang Jiemin, the chairman of CNPC's subsidiary PetroChina (0857.HK), said on Friday.

Jiang also said it would take a fairly long time to finalize the purchase agreement for a deal to buy 2 million tones of liquefied natural gas per year from Qatar, and that his company planned to put two Chinese LNG terminals into operation next year, in Dalian and Jiangsu.

Doha, 05 March 2010 (The Peninsula)

Middle Eastern mobile operators have outperformed their western counterparts for the first time, which have led to profitable growth and overseas expansion, a recent study shows.

PRTM, a global management consultancy firm, stated in their report "The Future of Mobile Telecommunications--New Operating Strategies for a New World," that seven multinational operators with origins in this region--Etisalat, Orascom, Qatar Telecommunications (Qtel), STC, Zain from the Middle East, and MTN and Millicom in Africa--have more than 300 million subscribers and have expanded across Africa and parts of Asia to sustain growth momentum.

The study also showed that Egypt's Orascom Telecom has become the eighth largest mobile network in the world by customer numbers, overtaking some of the well-established international operators. The research showed that fundamental change of operational models is central to sustained leadership and that significantly emerging markets have altered the telecommunications landscape.

"The past decade has been a highly successful one for the leading Middle Eastern and African operators. Supported by typically affluent and growing home markets and benign competition, both revenue growth and cash flow have been strong. And the leading operators have used this cash flow, supplemented by the ready availability of private capital, to build regional multinationals," said Anil Khurana, lead director of PRTM's Middle East Region and co-author of the report. Ameet Shah, head of PRTM's mobile services practice, served as lead author of the report.

Between 2003 and 2009, the leader board of the world's 30 largest mobile operators changed dramatically, according to this first-of-its kind report. The report identifies 19 new mobile leaders worldwide, measured either by number of subscribers or revenue. A common thread among these leaders is the continuous adaptation of their operating models to address new market conditions--crucial within a mobile industry where the game can change rapidly and where new players can quickly overtake yesterday's leaders.

"The rise of operators from emerging markets is testament to two factors: the rapid growth in their domestic markets, and their drive to play in multiple markets. But, as their existing markets start to mature, it is not yet clear that these companies will be able to revamp their operating models and sustain continued growth based on innovation, cost management, outsourcing, and the like," added Khurana, who calls these operators the "new multinationals."

The analysis reveals that the highest ranking mobile players over the past five years have modified their business models in ways that have led to profitable growth and support from shareholders, resulting in acquisitions and overseas expansion.

Telefónica and Telenor are prime examples of companies that have successfully ridden the boom of mobile usage in developing countries through strategic changes to their operating models.

This trend is evident in the emergence of large multinational operators from Russia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. It is also reflected through market consolidation within the US and through the growing importance of the leading Chinese and Indian operators. Those who have not adapted their operational models, including some major European operators, have experienced relative decline.

The report argues that operators that create the right operating models will increase performance and win investor backing in the international M&A game that is rationalizing many individual operators into global groups.

Consolidation during the next five years will mean an operator may need 300 million subscribers, or $50bn in revenue, to be among the global top 10 in 2014.

China National Petroleum Company (CNPC) will start work on the Iraqi Halfaya project in the second half of this year, Jiang Jiemin, the chairman of CNPC's subsidiary PetroChina (0857.HK), said on Friday.

Jiang also said it would take a fairly long time to finalize the purchase agreement for a deal to buy 2 million tones of liquefied natural gas per year from Qatar, and that his company planned to put two Chinese LNG terminals into operation next year, in Dalian and Jiangsu.

(Reporting by Chen Aizhu; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner)

(Reuters)

loomberg reports that Iraq raised the official selling prices for crude delivered to the U.S. and lowered them for Europe.

The March price for Basra Light oil for delivery to the U.S. rose by 80 cents, to a discount of $4.35 below West Texas Intermediate crude, according to a statement from Iraq's Oil Ministry. The price for Europe declined by 20 cents to a $1.70 discount to Dated Brent, while the Asia price fell to a 45-cent discount to the average of Oman and Dubai oil prices.

The price of Kirkuk crude to the U.S. increased by 40 cents to 75 cents below WTI, and dropped by the same amount for Europe to a discount of 90 cents below Dated Brent, the ministry said.

Meanwhile, Reuters reports that the benchmark for pricing sales to the US will change in April to the Argus Sour Crude Index (ASCI).  According to Falah Alamri, head of Iraq’s State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO), “Switching to Argus was the best solution for us to ensure stable prices and also to satisfy our customers.”

The ASCI better represents the type of oil exported from the country. (Both the UAE and Qatar publish an outright price for their crude, rather than a differential, and do not publish different prices for different destinations).

Iraqi crude oil production rose 14 percent in January from a year earlier, averaging 2.46 million barrels a day, according to the U.S. State Department.

(Sources: Bloomberg, Reuters)

In an important step for developing the Iraqi telecommunications infrastructure, Gulf Bridge International (GBI), the Middle East's first privately owned submarine cable operator, and  Iraqi Telecom & Post Company, the leading telecommunications service provider in Iraq,  today announced the signing of a agreement to land GBI's new undersea telecommunications cable in Iraq. The announcement was made in the presence of H.E. the Iraqi Minister of Communications and H.E. the Ambassador of Iraq to Qatar.

The Gulf Bridge International Cable System (GBICS) is planned to connect Iraq with the Gulf region and the rest of the world, via a reliable, high capacity fiber optic cable linking the region to India and the Far East (East Route) and Europe (West Route).

Commenting on the importance of the GBI-Iraqi Telecom agreement, Iraqi Minister of Communications H.E. Eng. Farouq Abed Al-Qader said: "The signing of an agreement to land GBI's new undersea telecommunications cable in Iraq comes within the policy of the Iraqi Ministry of Telecommunications to build a strong communications infrastructure which supports development in all areas through establishing communications network contributes in reducing the digital gap between the government sectors, in addition to strengthening Iraqi economic and informational relations with the countries of the region and the world."

Board Member and Chief Executive Officer Eng. Ahmed Mekky stated: "Our partnership with the Iraqi Ministry of Communications - representing Iraqi Telecom & Post Company - to land a high capacity marine cable in Iraq is an important step in GBI's vision to provide the latest underwater cable technology for all Gulf countries".

In turn, Qasim Mohamed Jasim Al-Hasani, Director General of ITPC stated: "The agreement signed today is a major step to provide an undersea option which helps in facilitating the passage of international communications and upgrading the level of international services provided by ITPC to the Iraqi people".

Designed to operate for 25 years and enter service during 2011, GBICS will exploit the commercial opportunity provided by the increasing demand for reliable high-speed telecommunications capacity in the Gulf region. In order to achieve this, GBICS will have very high capacity capable of meeting all current and future GCC demands with a design capacity of 5 Terabits per second on certain routes.

The Qatar-based Gulf Bridge International (GBI) and the Iraq Telecommunications and Post Company (ITPC), a leading telecom company in the country signed a $445m deal to establish a landing for GBI's advanced submarine telecommunication fiber-optic cable in Iraq, here yesterday. The GBI-ITPC agreement is the first in a series of Landing Party Agreements that the Doha-based Middle East's first privately owned submarine cable operator is expected to sign this year.

"The modernization of Iraq's communications infrastructure is as important to us as the contracts Iraq had recently signed with international companies to develop the oil fields," said Dr Farooq Abdelqader, Iraq Minister of Communication. "The agreement reflects the true brotherhood between Qatar and Iraq.

The project will support development in all sectors in Iraq through the establishment of communications network and contribute to reducing the digital divide. It will also help in forging closer ties with Iraq's economic and information with all Gulf states and the countries of the world," he said prior to signing the Landing Party Agreement for Iraq's first international fiber optic cable connection.

Dr Abdelqader also stressed that Iraq chose the Doha based company due to the latest infrastructural facilities it provided connecting to Europe and Asia. He confirmed that the submarine cable landing agreement will enhance the capabilities of Iraq. Added to this, the contract does not involve any investment in the project from the side of the telecommunications company.

"GBICS provides infrastructure for national telecom systems to support the aspirations of the countries involved for a sustainable development. The extension of the cable to Iraq will provide new services of unprecedented quality and reliability to its people," said Rashid Al Nuaimi, Chairman, and GBI.

Meanwhile, Ahmed Mekky, GBI board member and CEO, told The Peninsula, that Tyco Telecommunications, the main contractor, has by now completed the part of the project in the Mediterranean Sea, from Italy to Alexandria. The stretch between the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf and the final landings in various countries is currently being estimated. Tyco Telecommunications is responsible for the design, manufacturing, permitting, deployment, and testing of GBI's undersea cable network, as well as onward connectivity to Europe and India.

GBI's International Cable System undersea cable network is planning to connect the Gulf region states in a 'Gulf Ring' system, in addition to onward telecommunications connectivity to the Far East (East Route) and Europe (West Route).

Commenting on the importance of the GBI-ITPC MoU, GBI Chairman Rashid Al-Noaimi said: "The landing of GBI's new undersea telecommunications cable is a historic event, as it is the first cable to be landed in Iraq. This step will certainly improve Iraqi economic performance especially the telecommunication sector, motivate the development process and facilitate various business investments".

GBI International Cable System is the first cable to be landed in Iraq and will contribute to develop telecommunications services for both individuals and companies. The cable will provide high capacity internet services especially with Gulf countries, and will help in reconnecting Iraq with the rest of the world through high speed, reliable cable networks.

"This MOU reflects strong Qatari-Iraqi relations, and it opens doors for more co-operations in other fields in the future. We look forward for the best mutual investments between Iraq and Qatar, as well as our people's interest," said Jawad Al-Hindawi, Iraqi Ambassador to Qatar.

Qasim Mohamed Jasim Al-Hasani, Director General of ITPCITPC stated: "The landing of the GBI cable in Iraq will provide unprecedented services, and will support other sectors which will benefit from the rapid and immediate communication the GBI cable will offer."

The GBI International Cable System offers options to upgrade to a true 64 x 40Gbps per fiber pair system, enabling real-time communications for telecommunications operators and major industries.