BAGHDAD — Iraq plans to develop its southern oil
reserves along the Kuwaiti border.
Industry sources said the Iraqi Oil Ministry has issued invitations to a
series of Western majors to drill for oil in southern Iraq near Kuwait. The
sources said the tender called for the drilling of 20 wells in the Rumaila
field and the upgrade of another 12.
The project also called for the evaluation and upgrade of export
terminals. The sources said British and U.S. companies have been invited to
participate in the tender.
In 2004, an Iraqi-Turkish company was awarded a project to restore oil
production at the northern Khormala Dome field, Middle East Newsline reported. Most of the work has been
supplied by the Oil Ministry.
Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates has awarded ExxonMobil a
project to develop an offshore oil field.
The Supreme Petroleum Council of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi selected
ExxonMobil as its strategic partner to develop the Upper Zakum offshore oil
field. Officials said ExxonMobil would acquire a 28 percent equity stake in
the project, the operator of which is the Zakum Development Co. Eighty-eight
percent of Zadco is owned by the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. with
the remaining stake held by the Japan Offshore Development Co.
Upper Zakum produces about 550,000 barrels of oil per day. Officials
said the project would increase production to 750,000 barrels a day over the
next 18 months.
ExxonMobil was said to have bested such Western energy majors as BP,
ChevronTexaco, Royal/Dutch Shell and Total.
