IBN's Expert Bloggers Lead the Way
By Padraig O'Hannelly. For readers interested in investment opportunities in Iraq, I think it's fair to say that our Expert Bloggers have excelled themselves in recent weeks. Following the analysis of Iraq's banking sector by InvestAD's Sherif Salem earlier this month, Mark DeWeaver of Quantrarian Asia Hedge has been picking through the balance sheets of […]
Weekly Security Update
By Gary Sandiford, Olive Group’s Dubai based assessments manager. Olive Group is a leading provider of security and technology solutions and has operated continuously in Iraq since 2003. Overview Olive Groups Iraq statistics are drawn from multiple sources, including media reporting and direct liaison with in country assets. Included within the statistics are a […]
DNO Falls on Q2 Results
By John Lee. Shares in DNO International, the Norwegian oil company with interests in Iraqi Kurdistan, were down 4% at lunchtime on Wednesday following the announcement of second quarter results: DNO International ASA, the Norwegian oil and gas company, today released results for the second quarter of 2012 with operating revenues of NOK 155 million, […]
Eni has "No Plans for Kurdistan Oil Deals"
By John Lee. The Chief Executive of Italian oil and gas group Eni says the company does not plan to compromise its business in Iraq by making energy deals with Kurdistan. Paolo Scaroni (pictured) said that one of the conditions for developing the Zubair field was that there could be no deals with local governments […]
Afren Updates on Operations in Kurdistan
By John Lee. Shares in oil exploration company Afren closed up over 3% on Tuesday following the announcement of the company's interim results. The company gave the following update on its operations in Iraqi Kurdistan: Barda Rash Extensive testing commenced at the BR-1 well on 7 July 2012 and has yielded oil rates in excess […]
Core Inflation Drops to 5.9%
By John Lee. Iraq's core inflation rate dropped to 5.9 percent year-on-year in July, Mudher Kasim, deputy governor of the Iraqi Central Bank, has told Reuters. The figure is down from 6.1 percent in June. Core inflation strips out fuel prices. (Source: Reuters)
MP Accuses Saudi Over Oil Pipeline
By John Lee. An MP and member of the Parliamentary Oil and Energy Committee has hit out at Saudi Arabia for its "hostile policy" towards Iraq. Udai Awad, of the Ahrar bloc within the Sadrist Trend, told AIN: "The reason for the dispute with Saudi Arabia is the attempt by KSA [Kingdom of Saudi Arabia] […]
Mid-Euphrates Airport to be Managed by Babel, Karbala, Najaf
By John Lee. The Provincial Council in Babel [Babil] has voted unanimously for "the participation of each of Karbala, Babil and Najaf provinces in managing the Mid-Euphrates airport, which is hopefully established in the land among the three provinces". The Head of the Investment Committee in the Council, Mahdi Aakul, told AIN: "The participation will […]
Heritage Oil Shares Jump on Sale to Genel
By John Lee. Shares in Heritage Oil closed up 12.3% on Tuesday following the announcement that it will sell part of its Miran Block in Kurdistan and borrow money from Genel Energy to raise $450 million to fund oilfield purchases in Nigeria. The comany will sell a 26 percent stake in the block to Genel and […]
Hawrami Hits Back at "Baseless" Reports on US Oil Policy
By John Lee. Kurdistan's Minister for Natural Resources, Ashti Hawrami (pictured), has hit back at reports that the US has warned oil companies not to sign any oil deals with Kurdistan without Baghdad's approval or Baghdad may take legal action against them. According to AKnews, Hawrami described the media reports quoting Nuland as "baseless ….These […]
Genel Energy Buys More Kurdish Assets
By John Lee. Genel Energy has increased its commitment to oil exploration in Iraqi Kurdistan with the announcement that it has agreed to acquire an additional 26 per cent interest in the Miran exploration block from Heritage Oil. The announcement comes just a day after the Kurdistan Regional Government's Oil and Gas Council approved the […]
US State Department Misquoted on Risks of KRG Oil Contracts
By John Lee. At the US State Department's Daily Press Briefing on Monday, Spokesperson Victoria Nuland was asked to clarify the US Government's official position on oil contracts in Iraqi Kurdistan. "Our position on this has not changed", she said. "We’ve spoken about it many times here. We speak about it in Iraq. With regard […]