Oil Ministry starts taking over Majnoon Ops
By John Lee. Reuters reports that Iraq's oil ministry has said it had started to take over operations at Majnoon oilfield from Shell. Earlier this year, Shell said it will exit the field, which is expected to happen by the end of June. The ministry has formed a management team to handle production after the […]
Kurdistan quickly Descending into Chaos
By Fazel Hawramy for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The Kurdistan region of Iraq is fast descending into chaos, with protests continuing for the third day in some parts of Sulaimaniyah province and security forces using live ammunition […]
Shaikan Payment Update
By John Lee. Gulf Keystone Petroleum (GKP) has confirmed that a gross payment of $15.0 million ($12.0 million net to GKP) has been received from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) for Shaikan crude oil export sales in August 2017. (Source: GKP)
Iraq’s Fifth Licensing Round
By Alessandro Bacci. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The Ministry of Oil has repeatedly said that it would like to renegotiate the terms of its service contracts with the international oil companies (IOCs) to link the fees the companies receive for […]
Genel Shares Rise on Debt Reduction Plan
By John Lee. Shares in Genel Energy closed the day up 5.9 percent on Wednesday, after the company's bondholders approved its proposal to reduce the outstanding bond debt from $421.8 million to $300 million. It will also extend maturity through amending and restating terms to a new 5 year tenor. DNB Markets and Pareto Securities […]
IBN Welcomes New Expert Blogger
By Padraig O’Hannelly. This week at Iraq Business News, we are delighted to welcome a new Expert Blogger to our ranks: Alessandro Bacci (pictured) is an independent energy consultant in relation to business strategy and corporate diplomacy (policy, government, and public affairs). Much of his activity is linked to the MENA region, an area where […]
Genel Energy confirms Payments for KRI Oil Exports
Genel Energy has announced the receipt of payments from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) for oil sales during September 2017 from the Tawke and Taq Taq PSCs. DNO ASA, as operator of the Tawke PSC, has announced the receipt of $54.32 million from the KRG as payment towards September 2017 crude oil deliveries to the […]
UNAMI "Deeply Concerned" about Violence in Kurdistan
The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) is deeply concerned about the violence and the reported casualties during demonstrations in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) in the last two days, and calls for restraint and calm on all sides. The people have the right to partake in peaceful demonstrations, and the authorities in […]
Lukoil signs Contract for Exploration at Block 10
Russia's Lukoil has signed contracts with the state-owned Iraqi Oil Exploration Company to carry out seismic surveys at the Eridu field in Block 10, and also at Block 10's southern and central parts, previously not part of the survey. The scope of appraisal works at Eridu field includes a 3D seismic survey of 983 square kilometers to […]
Hanwha briefs PM on Progress at Bismaya Housing Complex
By John Lee. Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi has received a delegation from Korean company Hanwha, headed by its President and CEO, Choi Kwang-ho. During the meeting, they discussed the progress at the Basmaya housing complex near Baghdad, with the Prime Minister stressing the importance of securing the road link between the residential complex and the center […]
Netherlands increases Support to Newly Liberated Areas
The Government of Netherlands has contributed an additional USD 14.2 million (EUR 12 million) to UNDP’s Funding Facility for Stabilization (FFS), which finances fast-track initiatives to stabilize areas liberated from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). The Netherlands is currently the fourth largest donor supporting stabilization work in Iraq, with a total […]
Germany ties Aid to Peace Efforts
By John Lee. Germany has said that its continuing aid to Iraq depends on peaceful efforts to solve the conflict between Baghdad and Erbil. Reuters quotes German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel (pictured) as saying on Monday: "Our support is for Iraq as a unified state ... We want to continue that, but the precondition is […]