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Kurdistan PM Nechirvan Barzani in Baghdad
for talks on oil law
23.6.2008
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June
23, 2008
BAGHDAD, —
The prime minister of Iraqi Kurdistan has brought
new proposals to Baghdad to discuss with the central
government to try to resolve disputes over a
deadlocked national oil law, an official said on
Sunday.
Iraq's cabinet agreed a draft oil law in February
last year, but it has failed to get through
parliament partly because of rows between the
Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and Baghdad over
who will control oil reserves and contracts.
Iraq needs billions of dollars to modernise its oil
industry and raise output after decades of sanctions
and war, but uncertainty over the law has stalled
foreign investment.
Jamal Abdullah, spokesman for the KRG, declined to
outline the proposals brought to Baghdad by
Nechirvan Barzani, prime minister of the largely
autonomous region of Kurdistan in northern Iraq, but
said they were a "good initiative". |
Nechirvan Barzani, Prime
Minister of
Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) |
"These are new suggestions to offer to the Iraqi
central government," Abdullah said, adding Barzani
arrived on Saturday.
"These proposals represent a new initiative, a good
initiative. The Kurdish side hopes this will help
solve all the differences over the oil law."
He said members of the delegation included the KRG's
top energy official, Ashti Hawrami.
In Dubai earlier this month,www.ekurd.net
Barzani said the KRG and
the central government would discuss a package of
proposals covering the draft oil law, revenue
sharing, the functions of the oil ministry and a
national oil company to oversee the industry.
Tensions have also arisen over contracts the KRG has
signed with foreign energy firms. The oil ministry
in Baghdad has called the deals illegal. The KRG
says they are constitutional.
Iraq has the world's third largest oil reserves at
around 115 billion barrels, although Deputy Prime
Minister Dr. Barham Salih said in April reserves
could be as much as 350 billion barrels.
In the absence of the oil law, Baghdad has been
negotiating six short-term technical service
contracts with foreign oil majors with the aim of
lifting output at its largest producing fields by a
combined 500,000 barrels a day.
Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani is expected to
announce on June 30 the names of the majors that
have won the deals, which are worth around $500
million each.
Five of the deals that have been under discussion
are with Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile,
Research), Shell in partnership with BHP Billiton (BHP.AX:
Quote, Profile, Research), BP (BP.L: Quote, Profile,
Research), Exxon Mobil (XOM.N: Quote, Profile,
Research) and Chevron (CVX.N: Quote, Profile,
Research) in partnership with Total (TOTF.PA: Quote,
Profile, Research).
Iraq has also been in talks with a consortium of
Anadarko (APC.N: Quote, Profile, Research), Vitol
and Dome for a sixth contract.
Shahristani has said Baghdad also plans to offer
many of the same large producing fields in a bidding
round for long-term development projects either at
the end of June or in early July. Baghdad has
prequalified 41 firms to bid for those contracts.
Copyright, respective author or news agency,
Reuters
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