By Simon Watkins for OilPrice.com. Any opinions expressed are those of the author(s), and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Is Iraq About to Make Its Biggest Geopolitical Pivot in Years? Washington's escalation of sanctions on Russia's top oil firms has opened space for Western majors to re-enter Iraq. Click here […]
By John Lee. The Iraqi Embassy in Moscow has issued a clarification regarding reports that Iraq plans to nationalise the West Qurna-2 oil field, operated by Russia's Lukoil. The embassy confirmed that the field is fully state-owned. Under the 2008 licensing round agreement, Lukoil managed and developed the field and produced oil under a service […]
By John Lee. State-owned Basra Oil Company (BOC) has been approved by the Council of Ministers to assume responsibility for managing petroleum operations at the West Qurna 2 oilfield, in line with the provisions of the field's service and development contract. According to a statement from the Prime Minister's Office, the Cabinet decision also authorises the […]
By John Lee. Iraq's Ministry of Oil has issued exclusive invitations to several major US oil companies to submit bids for taking over the operatorship of the West Qurna-2 field. The Ministry said it is pursuing a transparent, competitive process based on approved criteria for awarding oilfield development contracts. Direct negotiations are under way with […]
By John Lee. The United States has issued a sanctions waiver allowing continued operations related to Russia's Lukoil until 13th December, following restrictions imposed earlier this month. Lukoil said on 14th November that it is in negotiations with several potential buyers for its international assets, adding that a deal will be announced once agreements and […]
By Ahmed Mousa Jiyad. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. MoO Should Brace for ROCs' Coerced Exodus The tripartite (UK, EU and US) sanctions against Russian oil companies (ROCs), Lukoil and Rosneft, present direct, immediate and impacting threats to the development of […]
By John Lee. Swiss-based Gunvor Group has withdrawn its proposal to acquire Lukoil's international assets following opposition from the US Treasury Department. The Treasury stated that Gunvor would not receive a licence to operate as long as Russia continues its military actions in Ukraine, describing the company as "the Kremlin's puppet." Gunvor rejected the claims, […]
By John Lee. Russia's LUKOIL has announced that it will sell its international assets to Swiss-based Gunvor Group. In an announcement on Thursday, the company said: "The conclusion of the binding agreement for the transaction is subject to conditions precedent including obtaining OFAC permission by the Purchaser as well as any other applicable licenses, permits […]
By John Lee. Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Affairs and Minister of Oil Hayan Abdul Ghani Al-Sawad met today (Wednesday) with a joint delegation from Russia's Lukoil and Japan's INPEX. The discussions focused on cooperation across Iraq's oil, gas, and energy sectors. The delegation included Ivan Romanovsky, Lukoil Vice President for the Middle East; Elnur […]
By John Lee. Iraq's Minister of Oil, Hayan Abdul Ghani, held talks in Baghdad on Wednesday with Russian Ambassador Elbrus Kutrashev and a delegation from Russian energy giant Lukoil. The meeting focused on strengthening cooperation between Iraq and Russia in the oil, gas, and energy sectors. Also in attendance were Bassem Mohammed Khudair, Undersecretary for […]
By John Lee. Iraq's Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, met with a delegation from Russian oil company Lukoil to review ongoing cooperation and projects in Iraq. The discussions focused on the company's operations in the West Qurna-2 and Eridu [Block 10] oil fields and the progress made in these developments. Al-Sudani emphasized the government's priority […]
By John Lee. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that Russia has invested over $19 billion in the Iraqi energy sector. "LUKOIL, Gazprom Neft and Rosneft account for the bulk of this investment," he added. The Minister made the comments at the opening ceremony of an exhibition marking the 80th anniversary of establishing diplomatic […]
