By John Lee. Gazprom Neft, operator of the Badra oilfield, has reported the successful completion of well-testing at its BD4 appraisal well at the end of December, 2013. Potential production capacity was tested through the sequential testing of six drilled strata, followed by final testing of all pay horizons concurrently. A daily natural flow rate […]
By John Lee. Russia's Gazprom Neft has picked a contractor to drill six production wells in the Badra field in Iraq which it operates. China’s Zhongman Petroleum and Natural Gas Group Co., Ltd (ZPEC) has won the tender. The contract includes engineering, procurement and drilling of wells. Two rigs will start drilling in March 2014. […]
By John Lee. World Tribune reports that Iraq has received its first shipment of Russian Mi-35 attack helicopters. Part of a $4.3-billion deal with the Kremlin, the helicopters are regarded as some of the most advanced in the Russian military. “Iraq expects to see a consignment of around 40 Mi-35 and Mi-28NE attack helicopters by the […]
By John Lee. China Petrochemical Corporation, also known as Sinopec, is still unable to participate in projects in central and southern Iraq four years after it acquired a project in northern Kurdistan, reports the Wall Street Journal. The company held talks with Russia's Lukoil about jointly developing the West Qurna-2 oil field, but Lukoil's chief […]
By John Lee. Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari held a meeting with the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Russia, Mr. Ilya Murgunov, on 7th October. During the meeting, they discussed strengthening relations between the two countries and the results of discussions with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Mr. Sergei Lavrov, recently in New York […]
By John Lee. Andrei Kuzyayev [Andrey Kuzyaev] (pictured), head of Lukoil's overseas operations, has said that Lukoil plans to reach commercial levels of oil production at West Qurna-2 in the first quarter of 2014, and is interested in participating in the Kirkuk oilfield in northern Iraq. He told Reuters: "There are no infrastructure risks [in […]
The first group students have completed their studies in the training center of LUKOIL Overseas Mid-East Ltd., LUKOIL's operating company for West Qurna-2 project, in Basra province. 170 Iraqi nationals who have completed a 1.5 year training program were immediately assigned to different facilities of West Qurna-2 field depending on their obtained qualifications, including well […]
By John Lee. Iraq has selected five additional international oil companies to bid for the development of its $4.4-billion Nassiriya oil field and the construction of a new 300,000 bpd refinery, reports Reuters. The companies added to the list are: France's Maurel et Prom; Russia's Rosneft; Essar UAE India; South Korea's GS Engineering & Construction […]
By John Lee. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has announced that scheduled non-stop flights between Baghdad and Moscow will resume in August. Azzaman reports that the agreement comes amid reports that Iraq is keen to expand its traditional ties with Russia, which was the country’s main supplier of arms, adding that an arms deal, which was […]
By John Lee. Russian oil company LUKoil has announced that its President, Vagit Alekperov (pictured), held talks in Moscow on Sunday with Iraqi Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki, and Iraqi Oil Minister, Abdul Karim Luaibi [Elaibi]. The parties discussed the progress of the West Qurna-2 development project, the company’s plans to develop Block-10, and other possible projects […]
By Ali Abel Sadah for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. On June 18, an Iraqi military source confirmed that the air force command will receive “Alligator” combat helicopters from Russia in the coming period. In a statement to Al-Monitor, the source, […]
By John Lee. Gazprom has said that it is interested in working further in the oil and gas sector in Iraqi Kurdistan. Following a meeting in St. Petersburg between the Russian company's Chairman, Alexei Miller [Alexey Miller] (pictured), and KRG President Massoud Barzani, Gazprom issued a statement saying, "in particular, the parties discussed the progress […]
