Oil Infrastructure Set for Boost
The oil minister, Abdul Karim al-Luaibi, has been busy in the few days since his appointment. Not only has he announced that exports from the northern Kurdistan region are to resume, but he has also promised that the focus will be on rebuilding the decayed oil infrastructure, according to the Arab Times. Al-Luaibi, who has […]
Basra Could Become Semi-Autonomous
With a new Iraqi government now finally formed, Basra's desire for a referendum on becoming semi-autonomous may finally get past Baghdad's stalling tactics. The Iraqi constitution allows provinces to become semi-autonomous, just like the northern region of Kurdistan. The Associated Press reported on the pros and cons, writing that Basra would be able to stop […]
Oil Exports to Increase Again in Days
One of the first acts of Iraq's oil minister is to announce that oil exports from the northern, semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan will begin again shortly, according to Associated Press. Abdul Karim al-Luaibi said exports will resume "in the coming few days." Al-Luaibi is independent, but with links to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Daawa party. Just a […]
Ship Imports Up 100,000 Tonnes
In another sign of Iraq's continued, swift, steady progress, Iraq's ports reported record profits exceeding 46bn dinars, according to Aknews. This is an increase of 10% compared to last year. Anmar al Safi, a director of the Iraqi Ports Public Company, said: "The rate of cargo dump increased 100,000 tonnes from 2009." No doubt shipping imports and profits will […]
Egypt Opens Consulate in Erbil, Discusses $2bn Debt
Egypt’s Foreign Minister, Ahmed Abul Gheit, officially opened his country’s consulate in Erbil on Sunday; this is the first Arab consulate to be opened in the Kurdish region, according to a report from Bloomberg. The opening of the consulate is expected to boost bilateral ties between Egypt and Iraq and Kurdistan Region. The minister stressed […]
Iraq Oil Output Now Up to 2.6m bpd
Iraq's oil minister, Abdul-Karim Elaibi [Luaibi], says the country's daily crude production has exceeded 2.6 million barrels a day. The minister says oil production will reach its planned targets "sooner than expected." Elaibi did not set a date for reaching these new levels in comments to reporters on Monday, although some reports put the target […]
Iraq Applies to Join ECO
Iraq has applied to join the Economic Cooperation Organization, or ECO, Turkey's President Abdullah Gul has reported, according to an article at the weekend from World Bulletin. Leaders of ECO-member countries gathered in Istanbul for a one-day summit meeting during which Turkey assumed the rotating term presidency from Iran. Iraq, as well as Qatar and […]
Addax Petroleum Increases Output
Addax Petroleum Corp.’s crude output has risen 14 percent since the Geneva-based company was acquired by China Petrochemical Corp. in August last year, according to Bloomberg. Crude production at Addax has grown to 155,000 barrels a day from 136,000 barrels a day, China Petrochemical, also known as Sinopec Group, said in a statement on its […]
Call to Reschedule Iraq's Debt
Following Iraq's exit last week from the UN's Chapter VII restrictions, an Iraqi economist has called for a rescheduling of the country's debt repayments. “Iraq’s financial funds are under UN trusteeship, according to UN’s Article 7,” Dr. Nabil Jaafar of Basra Univesity told Aswat al-Iraq news agency, pointing out that “the official and private debtors […]
PetroChina Invites 7 Contractors to Bid for Halfaya
PetroChina has invited seven contractors to submit the bidding documents for engineering, procurement and construction work on the first phase of development at the Halfaya oilfield in Iraq in the first week of 2011, the Norway-based energy newspaper Upstream has reported. The report said the companies invited to participate in the tender include the UK-listed […]
Mass Global Wins Kurdistan Smelter Contract
The Kurdistan Regional Government has licensed a firm to build a $1.1 billion smelter and steel plant, according to Trade Arabia. Mass Global was granted the to build the project in the Chamchamal area between Kirkuk and Sulaimaniya, said Haidar Mustafa, head of the industrial projects department of KRG's investment commission. "The total amount of […]
Halliburton Complained of Iraq Security 'Mafia'
Oil companies working in Iraq complained of a "mafia" type atmosphere that drove the price of security up considerably, according to leaked U.S. diplomatic cables revealed by Wikileaks. London's Guardian newspaper reports that official at oil services company Halliburton complained the price of security in Iraq was "unwarranted" during a modestly secure environment in 2008. […]