WesternZagros to Target Over 1 Billion BOEs during 2011/2012 Exploration Program
WesternZagros Resources has announced that Sproule International has completed an independent audit of the Company's resource assessment of: the Tertiary Eocene and Cretaceous reservoir intervals of Kurdamir-1; the Jeribe reservoir at Sarqala-1; and the Upper Fars reservoir at Mil Qasim in the Kalar-Bawanoor Block ("Block K44"). This audit, together with the previous audit results of […]
Rail Project to Ease Baghdad Traffic
[Please click here for update] The Iraqi National Rail Company announced on Sunday that under its supervision the urban rail project in the Iraqi capital will be completed in 2013.. According to AKnews, the company’s press secretary, Jawad Kharsani, said the project will be carried out in conjunction with the French company Tharyom (sic) [Iraq […]
Stan Harbison on Iraq's Increased Oil Output
By Stan Harbison, Vice President of Research and Analysis at energy consultants EPRINC. In the past week, the ministry announced that two fields won at Iraq’s 2009 oil auctions had achieved their first significant benchmark. Production at Rumaila and Zubair each met the 10% production increase which allows them to begin to earn their per […]
Turkey Wants Regional Free-Trade Zone to Include Iraq
The Turkish Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, met the Iraqi Parliament Speaker, Osama al-Nujaifi, in Baghdad on Sunday and congratulated him on his election as the Parliament Speaker. Davutoglu said he was pleased over the developments in Iraq and underlined that, "we will be pleased to see inclusion of Iraq to a free trade zone among […]
Japan Insures Mitsubishi's Iraqi Gas Project
Bloomberg, quoting the Nikkei newspaper, says Mitsubishi's gas project in Iraq will receive long-term trade credit insurance from Japan's state-backed Nippon Export and Investment Insurance. According to the report, this is the first time in 21 years that Japan has provided this facility for a venture in the Middle East. The company will insure Mitsubishi’s […]
New Al-Faw Port to Cut Shipping Costs to Europe
According to a report from Iraq's National Media Centre, the new port at Faw [Fao], when completed, will reduce transport costs between Europe and Asia. Salah al-Khadir said the project will shorten the distance between Iraq and the other countries of the world, and especially the vessels coming from Asia to Eastern Europe, indicating that […]
Former Austrian Chancellor: EU Should Source Energy in Kurdistan
In a recent interview on EU's energy security with World Security Network Foundation (WSN), former Austrian Chancellor Dr. Wolfgang Schüssel (pictured) said that Europe should also diversify sources of energy supply by looking, for instance, to the Kurdish Region of Iraq. Europe is heavily dependent on Russia for its energy supply, especially natural gas, which […]
Iraq Cuts Crude Prices for February Delivery
Iraq, the third-largest producer in OPEC, cut the official price formulas for all its crude grades and destinations for February, according to price lists published by the State Oil Marketing Organisation (SOMO). Basrah Light and Kirkuk, the two grades sold by the Middle Eastern state, will sell for 20 cents a barrel less in February […]
Iraq Buys 120,000 tons Rice and Grain
Iraq has bought 120,000 tonnes of rice from abroad, Muthanna Jabbar, director general of Iraq's grains trading board, told Reuters on Sunday. He said Iraq bought 90,000 tonnes from the United States, and the remaining 30,000 tonnes from Argentina and Uruguay. Iraq, one of the world's biggest importers of rice and wheat, issued a tender […]
Canadian Court Rules Against Iraq in Aircraft Dispute
An appeal by the Iraqi government against Kuwait Airways' (KAC) claim over the theft of its aircraft during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait has been summarily dismissed by a Canadian court of appeal, Arabian Aerospace has reported. Last year, KAC seized Iraqi Airways and the State of Iraq interests in an order of new aircraft […]
Iraqi Drilling Company Plans 76 Wells in 2011
Iraq's state-run Iraqi Drilling Company plans to drill 76 wells in 2011 as part of a national effort to boost oil output to more than 200,000 barrels per day, the head of the firm said on Friday. According to Reuters, the firm's director, Idrees al-Yassiri, said the plan included drilling more than 15 wells at […]
Emerson Awarded Basra Oil Monitoring Contract
According to a report in The Engineer, Iraq’s South Oil Co. has awarded Emerson Process Management a contract to provide crude oil metering systems and related technologies for the new Al-Basra Oil Terminal (ABOT) now under construction in the Persian Gulf. The new terminal, which includes both onshore and offshore facilities, will boost Iraq’s oil […]