Tag Archives | exploration

Completion of Seismic Surveys in Al-Najaf's Haifa Site

By John Lee. The Iraqi Oil Exploration Company recently marked the successful completion of seismic surveys for the two-dimensional Haifa program in the Al-Najaf province. According to the Ministry of Oil, the surveys, conducted by the company, covered extensive areas within record time. This initiative aligns with the Ministry of Oil's plan to conduct seismic […]

ONGC to Resume Exploration at Iraq's Block 20?

By John Lee. A report from Telegraph India suggests that ONGC Videsh Ltd (ONV) is considering resuming operations in Iraq. The company received the rights to Block 20 in the Western Desert (then known as "Block 8") in 2000, but declared force majeur in 2003 due to the security situation at that time. According to […]

KRG to set up two New Oil Companies

By John Lee. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is reportedly setting up two new companies to manage its energy resources. A new Kurdistan Regional Oil Company (KROC) is to specialise in oil exploration, and the Kurdistan Oil Marketing Organization (KOMO) will concern itself with marketing of the oil. The development comes as Erbil and Baghdad […]

Shares in Genel Energy slump on Sarta Result

By John Lee. Shares in Genel Energy were trading down 7 percent on Tuesday morning after the company announced disappointing results at the Sarta-5 appraisal well: "Genel Energy plc ('Genel' or 'the Company') announces the following update on the Sarta PSC (30% working interest and operator). "Testing of the Sarta-5 appraisal well has been completed. […]

CNOOC to Explore Offshore in Iraq

By John Lee. The China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) is to press ahead with oil exploration at a 530-km2 offshore block in Basra. Originally agreed in 2019, the work had been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In parallel, Iraq's state-owned Oil Exploration Company (OEC) will carry out seismic surveys on the adjoining 120-km2 […]

Iraq in talks on Gas Exploration in Western Desert

By John Lee. Iraq's Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul-Jabbar Ismail has said that the Iraqi National Oil Company (INOC) has opened a dialogue about gas exploration in the Western Desert in Anbar Governorate. The company involved was not named, but was described as "one of the major international companies". The Minister said Iraq is keen to […]

Iraq OKs talks with Chevron on Oil Exploration

By John Lee. Iraq's Ministerial Energy Council approved discussions with US-based Chevron on the development of four exploration blocks in Dhi Qar. The statement from Iraq's Ministry of Oil gave no further details, but the project had previously been discussed during Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi's visit to the United States in August. Chevron currently has […]

$8bn New Iraqi Energy Agreements with US Firms

The following commercial agreements worth as much as $8 billion were reached during a signing ceremony between U.S. energy companies and the Government of Iraq on August 19, 2020: Honeywell and the Ministry of Oil agreed to advance the development of the Ar Ratawi [Artawi] gas project, which will further enable Iraq to capture, process, and […]

Iraq to Sign Exploration MoU With Chevron

By John Lee. Iraq is reported to be planning to sign a memorandum of understanding with US-based Chevron to explore for oil in Dhi Qar (Thi Qar) province. A person familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that the deal would formalise Chevron's interest in exploring the eastern and western parts of Nasiriyah, the capital of […]

Iraq "The Best Place on Earth to find and Produce Oil"

By John Lee. Petrel Resources has said that its operations in Iraq, which had been dormant for some time, are "once again showing life". In its Preliminary Results for the Year Ended 31/12/19, the company said: "Our Iraqi, director, Riadh, is actively promoting our ongoing interest in participating in the development of the many oil […]

Iraq's Oil-Rig Count Tumbles

By John Lee. Iraq's oil-rig count has reportedly fallen by almost two-thirds this year. Iraqi sources told S&P Global Platts that the total now averages 32 rigs operated by IOCs this month, down from 88 rigs in December 2019. Federal Iraq is averaging 31 rigs this month, compared with 76 in December, while the Iraqi […]