PetroChina Seeks to Strengthen Relationship with Iraq
PetroChina , the world's second-most valuable oil and gas producer after Exxon Mobil Corp, said on Thursday that it wants to further strengthen relationships with Iraq as it looks for new sources of oil. It is also focusing on Venezuela and Kazakhstan. The company was also in discussions for cooperation agreements with BP in the […]
US-Donated Computers for Children Missing
The U.S. military is demanding to know what happened to $1.9 million worth of computers purchased by American taxpayers, and intended for Iraqi schoolchildren, that have instead been auctioned off by Iraqi officials for less than $50,000. Reports from Associated Press and al Jazeera say the shipment of computers intended for schoolchildren in the central […]
Gas Fields Bidding - Iraq Readies Contracts
Iraq, site of the world’s third-largest oil reserves, will hold a third bidding round for gas fields which will take place on October 1, an Oil Ministry official has confirmed, according to a report from Bloomberg. “Definitive model contracts and final tender protocols will be ready on September 10, and the bidding process will be […]
Baghdad's ‘Facelift’ before Arab Summit
We reported recently that the Iraqi government has earmarked $300 million to upgrade Baghdad's hotels for next year’s Arab summit. Azzaman now reports that the Baghdad Municipality of Amanat al-Asima is racing against time to upgrade some of Baghdad’s run-down neighborhoods in advance of summit. The Iraqi government has expressed a willingness to host Arab […]
Kurdish Prime Minister to Release Oil Documents
Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG)’s prime minister promised Kurdish parliamentarians during a meeting on Wednesday to allow them access to all documents related to the KRG’s controversial oil contracts, exports and revenues, said the head of the major opposition group in Kurdistan parliament. In a meeting intended to mend fences with opposition groups in the parliament, […]
Heritage Oil Up Slightly on Results
Shares in Heritage Oil, which is actively drilling in Iraqi Kurdistan, were up 1.3% this morning following the announcement of interim results: HERITAGE OIL ANNOUNCES 2010 INTERIM RESULTS Heritage Oil Plc (LSE: HOIL), an independent upstream exploration and production company, announces the publication of its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2010. […]
Iran to Claim $1 Trillion War Reparations from Iraq?
Debate is raging in Iran regarding the issue of claiming reparations from Iraq in relation to the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. Earlier this month, a member of the Majlis (the Iranian parliament), Eivaz Heidarpour, who is also a member of Iran's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said that Iran could claim compensation from […]
America's New Ambassador to Iraq
America's new ambassador to Iraq, James Jeffrey, arrived in Baghdad last week and presented his diplomatic credentials to President Jalal Talabani. He replaces Christopher Hill, who retired after a 16-month stint in the post, and a 33-year career in the diplomatic service. Unlike Hill, Jeffrey already has wide experience in this part of the world, […]
Weekly Security Update for 26th Aug 2010
National Overview The total number of hostile incidents reported nationally increased for the third week in a row, seeing a significant rise in the number of recorded incidents in Baghdad and slight rises in the north and north central regions. The west and south east regions remained the same, in terms of numbers of incidents, […]
$4m of Gas Wasted Daily in Basra
A senior official at Shell said that Iraq is losing $50 dollars per second, more than $4 million a day, as a result of flaring the gas associated with oil production in the province of Basra. The company's Vice-President for the Middle East and North Africa, Mounir Bouaziz, reportedly said his company was currently awaiting […]
Banks Urge Privatisation of State Lenders
AFP reports that Iraq's privately-owned banks have called for the country's state-owned lenders to be privatised, to break up a near monopoly in lending by politicians whose actions remain stuck in the Saddam-era. Although foreign cash has flowed in since the US-led invasion of 2003, ministers still opt to use government banks to do business […]
Refinery Boss Resigns Following Threats
Dr. Ali al-Obaidi, who has been in charge of Iraq's Baiji refinery since 2007, has reportedly resigned from his position, having successfully slashed the level of theft from the facility. He had initially been installed as part of a joint U.S.-Iraqi corruption crisis team. According to Iraq Oil Report, the man credited with reducing theft […]