Kurdistan Oil & Gas Development

[burnsss]

Iraq’s Kurdistan region will export 250,000 barrels a day next year by pipeline after an agreement with the central government allowed shipments to resume this month.
The flow is about 100,000 barrels a day now and will reach 200,000 barrels a day next month, Ashti Hawrami, natural resources ministers in the Kurdistan Regional Government, said at a conference in London today.

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-1 ... 0-b-d.html

[alan131210]

An oil industry is built in Kurdistan since 2005.

Kurdistan (KRG) sees itself soon becoming a major energy player hosting the world's biggest oil companies - including one that may tap part of Iraq's giant Kirkuk oilfield - and making use of its own strategic export pipeline system across Turkey.

Kurdistan's Energy Minister Ashti Hawrami said the developments are for the good of Iraq although the policies also show the emergence of a northern region in control of its oil reserves, estimated at 45 billion barrels.

Oil and land rights have been at the centre of a long-running dispute between Kurdistan and Iraq's central government. Last week, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) reached a deal with Baghdad to end a dispute over oil payments and agreed to sustain oil exports of 140,000 barrels per day (bpd) this month - rising to 200,000 bpd for the rest of the year.

By 2013, the KRG's exports are expected to climb to 250,000 bpd and will continue to be shipped through a Baghdad-controlled pipeline to Turkey. Hawrami unveiled a plan earlier this year to build pipelines to Turkey to cope with an expected rise in exports to 1 million bpd for 2015.

He's sticking with it.

"Kurdistan's oil is going out and the revenue will be for all of Iraq. It will not be for the Kurdistan region alone," Hawrami told Reuters after speaking at an FT energy conference in London. "We recognize that we need investment in the infrastructure to boost export capacity, and we are doing that. We are ahead of the game, so we'll continue with it."

Last week's oil export and payment deal will resolve only part of a broader feud between Baghdad and Kurdistan over oil and territory that has involved major companies including Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Total who have signed exploration deals with the KRG, contracts the central government says are illegal.

Big Oil's foray into Kurdistan began last October with Exxon. Hawrami says more majors are on the way. Norway's Statoil and U.S. ConocoPhillips are actively looking. Sources say Royal Dutch Shell - which was close to moving into the region twice before - may be tempted to look again.

"I'm expecting within this year to see more major companies coming in and negotiating for whatever we have - whether by mergers and acquisitions or farming in between companies," said Hawrami, who became energy minister in 2006.

"Within a couple of years, Kurdistan will be home to 12 to 15 companies as opposed to 50. So there will be significant consolidation, which is normal."

One of the oil majors may be awarded a contract to treble output at the Khurmala dome - the northernmost part of Iraq's giant Kirkuk oilfield that's now being revived by private Kurdish KAR group. By the end of this year, Khurmala is expected to be pumping 100,000 bpd - up from current capacity of 85,000 bpd.

"We're looking at taking it to 250,000 to 300,000 barrels a day. This is something that probably requires three or four years, but that's part of our plan," said Hawrami. "The field is complex and has a lot of technical issues and challenges. It requires investment, high technology and management."

The Kirkuk oilfield is a flashpoint in relations between Baghdad and Arbil - the KRG's seat of government. But Hawrami said Arbil's agreement with Baghdad over oil payments and exports could pave the way for a wider rapprochement.

"I believe the problem will go away. Everybody will be looking at thanking the other party that's increasing production because he's really increasing production for the benefit of the Iraqi people," said the KRG energy chief.

Baghdad is meanwhile in talks with BP about a project to revive Kirkuk. The ageing oilfield is composed of three main geological formations, or domes: Khurmala, Baba, and Avana. Khurmala straddles Arbil province and is administered by the KRG under a 2008 agreement with Baghdad. The Oil Ministry's new development of Kirkuk would not include Khurmala.

Hawrami said the KRG, autonomous with its own government and armed forces since 1991, would also be interested in capturing the gas that is now being flared from the Avana dome, although Arbil would consult with the Kirkuk governorate and the federal government first as is required by the constitution.

The KRG minister said the region was also looking to expand its gas capacity first to meet domestic requirements, then to increase power generation capacity and fuel industrial use and provide power to neighbouring Iraqi provinces.

Exports to energy-hungry Turkey and beyond would come in the next year or two, he said.

The first steps for exports are already being made. KAR group is building a gas pipeline from Khurmala to a power station in Dohuk, near the border with Turkey. Hawrami said the pipeline would be finished by the end of the year and there would be enough gas by then to feed to the power station, which is now running on more expensive diesel fuel.

Hawrami said construction of a parallel, 1 million bpd crude oil pipeline, which will run from Khurmala to Fish Khabour near the border with Turkey, has not started but is expected to be completed by 2014.

"We haven't asked anyone to do it yet. We're looking at the other part of the pipeline on the Turkish side," said Hawrami. "So when that comes together, it might be one large project."

In the meantime, small quantities of Kurdish condensate are being trucked into Turkey in exchange for much-needed diesel and kerosene, he said. Baghdad has said that only the central government has the right to ship oil and gas.

http://www.malpress.com/english/news/69 ... ajors.html


^^^ some very useful info there i have highlighted in bald

[alan131210]

Royal Dutch Shell is exploring possibilities in Kurdistan, sources said, having seen rivals Exxon Mobil and Total risk Baghdad's wrath by moving into the region while developing major oilfields in the south.

Shell has come close to securing contracts with the region twice before but pulled back so as not to antagonise the central government in Baghdad, which regards all deals signed by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) as illegal.

Any decision by Shell to follow Exxon, Gazprom and Total into the fast-growing oil province would be bound to irritate Baghdad. Even so, while the moves have displeased the central government, it has yet to kick them out of their projects.

"Shell is in conversation with the KRG," a source with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified, said on Friday. "It could eventually lead to something material in Kurdistan."

The Anglo-Dutch major is already at work in Iraq's supergiant southern oilfields of Majnoon, where it is the operator, and West Qurna-1, where it's Exxon's junior partner. The company is also in a $17 billion gas joint venture with Iraq.

A Shell spokesman declined comment on talks about Kurdistan.

"Over time, we want to work in all of Iraq, but for the time being we've got three mega-projects on the go ... we're already one of the biggest oil and gas investors in country, so that's a big vote of confidence for where Iraq's going," spokesman Jonathan French said.

"We will, however, always be looking for new opportunities and projects where we can add value to Iraq."

DELICATE BALANCE

Shell has always wanted a presence throughout Iraq and has long had its eye on Kurdistan, first considering involvement in 2007. A second attempt was made just a year ago with Exxon.

Kurdistan's proven reserves of 45 billion barrels amount to more than a third of the national total of 143 billion recorded in BP's annual statistical review, where Iraq accounts for 8.7 percent of the world's known oil.

But Shell did not want to find itself caught, as Exxon is now, in the middle of political infighting between Baghdad and Arbil, the seat of Kurdistan's government, said a source close to the company.

Oil and land rights have been at the centre of a long-running dispute between Kurdistan and Iraq's central government. Last week, the KRG reached a deal with Baghdad to end a dispute over oil payments.

But that agreement will resolve only part of the broader tension between the centre and the region.

Last October, Shell had planned to move into Kurdistan with Exxon but withdrew at the 11th hour to ensure its gas joint venture got the final go-ahead from Baghdad, industry sources say.

Senior executives at Shell were divided over whether that was the right decision, said a source familiar with the company.

Since Exxon's move, Chevron, Total and Gazprom have taken up acreage, leaving little left to secure. Statoil and ConocoPhillips are also circling, according to industry sources.

In the year since Exxon made its bold northern play, Shell - like other companies involved in southern Iraq - has waited to see how Baghdad would retaliate. So far, the U.S. major has gone largely unpunished.

Part of Exxon's motivation for taking on Kurdish exploration blocks may have been the better terms on offer there. Margins on Iraq's southern projects are slim by comparison, say industry sources. They said that may also be driving Shell's discussions, however preliminary these may be.

Sources in Arbil say Shell has tried the patience of Kurdish Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani and Energy Minister Ashti Hawrami by twice walking away.

While Baghdad has barred companies involved in Kurdistan from doing any further business with the central government, the KRG energy minister said, however, that the region does not have a "blacklist".

"Our criteria are capability and seriousness of intention to invest," Hawrami told Reuters on Tuesday.

Reuters

[alan131210]

By Joel Wing

There are some contradictory stories emerging about whether oil major Royal Dutch Shell is in negotiations with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). Twice before it was in talks with the Kurds, but withdrew to protect its investments in southern Iraq. Now the equation has slightly changed. It has secured all of the contracts it was interested in with the Oil Ministry, while other large oil corporations have taken the leap to work in Kurdistan. It could now very well follow their lead and move north as well. That would seemingly break with the conservative mold it has forged so far, while working in the country.

When it comes to oil companies deciding to defy Baghdad and signing a deal with Kurdistan, all news reports have to be taken with a large grain of salt. On September 21, 2012, Reuters had a story that Shell was considering working in Kurdistan. The article claimed that it was inspired by the fact that other major oil companies such as Exxon Mobil and Total had recently signed contracts with the KRG, and Baghdad had taken no serious action against them. Deputy Premier Hussein Shahristani’s office denied that story, and the central government allegedly threatened to blacklist Shell if it went to the north. There was another piece that stated the company had backed out of talks, because of those warnings. More importantly, a Shell spokesman said that while the company would eventually like to work in all parts of Iraq, at the time it was happy with its operations in the south. It would not be surprising if Shell were considering working in Kurdistan, because its terms are much better than those offered by the Oil Ministry. At the same time, many firms do not get paid, have to rely upon the hope that their stock prices will go up with any discoveries they make there, and the region relies upon short-term deals with Baghdad in order to export. The central government has also threatened to sanction any company that moves north, but its stories about majors dropping negotiations with the KRG or halting their work have consistently been wrong. Right now it is impossible to tell which direction Shell will take on the matter. However, one could look at their past history.

Twice before Shell was in talks with Kurdish officials. That occurred in 2007 and 2011. The first time, the Oil Ministry had not opened up to foreign investment yet, but Kurdistan had. Details of the matter are not clear, but it would appear Shell decided to wait until the central government offered up the much larger southern petroleum fields. In 2011, the company was finalizing a natural gas deal in Basra province, and did not want to jeopardize that. That showed a conservative streak within the company that could point to its future actions. Shell may again be unwilling to go north if it thinks its projects in the south are more important.

Shell currently has three contracts with the central government. One is for the Majnoon field in Basra, which it has a joint venture with Malaysia’s Petronas. Shell is expected to invest between $2.5-$3 billion into that project by the middle of next year, out of a total of $50 billion. It is also a junior partner with Exxon in Basra’s West Qurna 1. Finally, it has a $17 billion deal with Mitsubishi to collect natural gas from several fields in Basra, which took three years to finalize. As part of that endeavor, it has signed a memorandum of understanding to build a petrochemical plant as well. The company’s work has not gone smoothly in the south. Its natural gas project is still caught up in red tape. It claims that it is losing ¢60 per barrel on the Majnoon field, and won’t start getting paid until the first half of 2013 when it will reach its first production target of 175,000 barrels per day. It is then supposed to start earning $1.39 per barrel, but the actual amount will be less as it has to pay a ¢35 tax. Its payments for West Qurna 1 have been caught up in the bureaucracy as well. Shell obviously has a huge amount of money invested in southern Iraq, and plans on putting in a lot more. That includes the largest natural gas deal in the country, which has huge potential. It’s for those reasons, that it was unwilling to make the leap into Kurdistan in the past. That being said, it is facing problems dealing with Baghdad. That’s because of the unwieldy government that seems to make even the most mundane matters difficult. Working in the KRG is much easier, and a major draw.

Shell could go either way when it comes to its talks with the Kurdistan Regional Government. In the past, it has been weary of giving up its endeavors with the central government. It has been willing to deal with Baghdad, and even expand its operations in the south. At the same time, its profits look to be slim, Kurdistan offers a much easier business environment, and official threats of retaliation by the Oil Ministry appear to be feckless. Shell has followed a conservative course in Iraq however. That would point to it staying the course, and concentrating upon its three contracts in Basra rather than taking the jump into the north. That doesn’t mean it won’t follow that path in the future. Still, further details will have to emerge before Shell’s ultimate decision can be determined.

[alan131210]

September 29, 2012

In a move closely watched by Turkey, Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and Baghdad took a step to end a long running oil payment and export row last week.

Under the terms of the deal, Baghdad agreed to pay oil companies operating in the KRG $900 million and committed to pay 17 percent of oil revenues to the KRG as stated in the Iraqi constitution.

In exchange, the Kurdish government will resume the export of 140,000 barrels per day (bpd) in October through the central government, which it halted in April. After the initial resumption, the KRG will export 200,000 bpd through Baghdad, according to the agreement.

"There is no real oil agreement between Baghdad and Erbil, just an another effort to get through the current impasse, to avoid Baghdad cutting off KRG revenues, and recommence KRG exports to boost investor confidence and make some payment to international oil companies," Denise Natali, a Kurdish expert and Minerva Chair at the Institute for National Strategic Studies, told SES Türkiye, noting that the deal doesn't change Baghdad's opposition to KRG's deals with oil companies.

"It shows the increasing vulnerability of the KRG and need to cut deals with Baghdad, despite their rhetoric about independent pipelines and possible secession," she added.

Ankara's relations with Baghdad have deteriorated over what the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki views as Turkish policies that undermine the authority of the central government.

Turkish companies signed oil deals with the KRG, and last month Turkey started purchasing oil from the KRG to refine and sell back to the Kurdish region as fuel.

Early this summer, Turkey backed a KRG proposal to build an oil and gas pipeline to Turkey that could carry as much as 1 million bpd independent of the Iraqi national pipelines. Two Iraqi pipelines currently bring oil to the Turkish port of Ceyhan.

However, Baghdad brands oil agreements between Ankara and the Kurdish autonomous region as illegal. Meanwhile, oil majors such as Exxon-Mobil, Chevron and Total have turned away from Baghdad to focus on the KRG, where they see better terms and opportunities.

Ali Semin, a Middle East expert from Istanbul-based think tank BILGESAM, told SES Türkiye that despite the recent agreement "problems still lie ahead. It's probable that there will be disputes between Ankara and Baghdad."

"Ankara bypassed Baghdad and signed oil-purchase agreements with Erbil. The Maliki government interpreted this move as undermining its power and reacted. As the problems between Ankara and Baghdad endure we will see more setbacks," he said, adding that Turkey should revise its policy towards Iraq to form closer energy ties with both the KRG and Baghdad.

Relations between the KRG and Baghdad have been tense over long-standing territorial, oil and payment disputes that have drawn Turkey into the conflict. Much to the ire of al-Maliki, Turkey has become party to the political quarrels in Iraq, backing the Kurds and Sunni Arabs who view al-Maliki, a Shi'a, as an authoritarian figure pursuing sectarian policies.

"Until the essential and underlying issue of power distribution in the Iraqi state is resolved or clarified, including resource and revenues sharing and now disputed territories, it is likely to see more energy related conflicts in Iraq in the future, which will impede the export potential of the KRG and Baghdad energy sectors," Natali said.

But Turkey and the KRG appear willing to go ahead developing closer energy ties despite the objections of Baghdad and the absence of a national Iraqi oil law that has been the source of the dispute between Baghdad and Erbil.

After years of decline, Iraq's oil sector has increased output to 3.3 million bpd, making it the second largest oil producer in OPEC.

Ashti Hawrami, the KRG's oil minister, said during a recent visit to Turkey that Iraq's production capacity could reach 6 or 7 million bpd by 2017. Hawrami said he expected the oil production of the KRG to reach 1 million bpd by 2015.

"Iraq has enormous untapped reserves. And the thing is what is going to happen if these reserves are tapped? Iraq is a game-changer," Maria van der Hoeven, head of the International Energy Agency, told Reuters.

As Iraq's oil production expands new pipelines will be needed to bring it to market. For the Kurds, a new pipeline to Turkey would allow it to export to Europe and loosen the financial grip of Baghdad. For Turkey, it would increase its already prominent economic and political influence over the Iraqi Kurds, but at the expense of its relationship with Baghdad.

"A pipeline project between KRG and Turkey bringing oil to Europe is feasible, but first disagreements between all parties should be eliminated," Semin said.

"In the future, as Turkey tries to take concrete steps to strengthen ties with KRG, new disagreements will emerge [with Baghdad]," Faik Sonmez, a consultant at the Energy Institute, told SES Türkiye, adding that the recent deal wouldn't solve long-term issues facing the KRG and Baghdad.

Southeast European Times.

[alan131210]

Denise Natali, a Kurdish expert and Minerva Chair at the Institute for National Strategic Studies, told SES Türkiye, noting that the deal doesn't change Baghdad's opposition to KRG's deals with oil companies.

she cant stop her anti KRG rhetorics the dumb bitch

[alan131210]

(Reuters) - Oil payments from Baghdad to Kurdistan will be transferred today, Kurdish Energy Minister Ashti Hawrami said on Sunday, ending a heated tug-of-war over the issue, at least for now.

Baghdad and Kurdistan agreed earlier this month to draw a line under a dispute over oil payments after the latter pledged to continue exports and Baghdad said it would pay foreign companies working there.

Kurdistan has riled Baghdad by signing deals with foreign oil majors, such as Exxon and Chevron, contracts the central government rejects as illegal.

"Payments will be transferred to the Kurdish regional government today: that's what I've been told in Baghdad today," Hawrami told reporters in the Iraqi capital.

Hawrami was in Baghdad for a meeting also attended by Iraqi Oil Minister Abdul-Kareem Luaibi, at which they were due to discuss a long-awaited oil and gas law.

More than nine years after the toppling of Saddam Hussein, the OPEC member still has no binding hydrocarbon law. A 2007 draft national oil law that aims to resolve the disputes over crude has been caught up in political infighting.

The oil contracts row is part of a broader battle between the Baghdad government and Kurdistan over oil rights, territory and regional autonomy that is straining Iraq's uneasy federal union.

[Rando]

Independence of Iraqi Kurdistan: Big Oil Pressuring for Breakup of Iraq?



There are some contradictory stories emerging about whether oil major Royal Dutch Shell is in negotiations with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). Twice before it was in talks with the Kurds, but withdrew to protect its investments in southern Iraq. Now the equation has slightly changed. It has secured all of the contracts it was interested in with the Oil Ministry, while other large oil corporations have taken the leap to work in Kurdistan. It could now very well follow their lead and move north as well. That would seemingly break with the conservative mold it has forged so far, while working in the country.

When it comes to oil companies deciding to defy Baghdad and signing a deal with Kurdistan, all news reports have to be taken with a large grain of salt. On September 21, 2012, Reuters had a story that Shell was considering working in Kurdistan. The article claimed that it was inspired by the fact that other major oil companies such as Exxon Mobil and Total had recently signed contracts with the KRG, and Baghdad had taken no serious action against them. Deputy Premier Hussein Shahristani’s office denied that story, and the central government allegedly threatened to blacklist Shell if it went to the north. There was another piece that stated the company had backed out of talks, because of those warnings. More importantly, a Shell spokesman said that while the company would eventually like to work in all parts of Iraq, at the time it was happy with its operations in the south. It would not be surprising if Shell were considering working in Kurdistan, because its terms are much better than those offered by the Oil Ministry. At the same time, many firms do not get paid, have to rely upon the hope that their stock prices will go up with any discoveries they make there, and the region relies upon short-term deals with Baghdad in order to export. The central government has also threatened to sanction any company that moves north, but its stories about majors dropping negotiations with the KRG or halting their work have consistently been wrong. Right now it is impossible to tell which direction Shell will take on the matter. However, one could look at their past history.

Twice before Shell was in talks with Kurdish officials. That occurred in 2007 and 2011. The first time, the Oil Ministry had not opened up to foreign investment yet, but Kurdistan had. Details of the matter are not clear, but it would appear Shell decided to wait until the central government offered up the much larger southern petroleum fields. In 2011, the company was finalizing a natural gas deal in Basra province, and did not want to jeopardize that. That showed a conservative streak within the company that could point to its future actions. Shell may again be unwilling to go north if it thinks its projects in the south are more important.

Shell currently has three contracts with the central government. One is for the Majnoon field in Basra, which it has a joint venture with Malaysia’s Petronas. Shell is expected to invest between $2.5-$3 billion into that project by the middle of next year, out of a total of $50 billion. It is also a junior partner with Exxon in Basra’s West Qurna 1. Finally, it has a $17 billion deal with Mitsubishi to collect natural gas from several fields in Basra, which took three years to finalize. As part of that endeavor, it has signed a memorandum of understanding to build a petrochemical plant as well. The company’s work has not gone smoothly in the south. Its natural gas project is still caught up in red tape. It claims that it is losing ¢60 per barrel on the Majnoon field, and won’t start getting paid until the first half of 2013 when it will reach its first production target of 175,000 barrels per day. It is then supposed to start earning $1.39 per barrel, but the actual amount will be less as it has to pay a ¢35 tax. Its payments for West Qurna 1 have been caught up in the bureaucracy as well. Shell obviously has a huge amount of money invested in southern Iraq, and plans on putting in a lot more. That includes the largest natural gas deal in the country, which has huge potential. It’s for those reasons, that it was unwilling to make the leap into Kurdistan in the past. That being said, it is facing problems dealing with Baghdad. That’s because of the unwieldy government that seems to make even the most mundane matters difficult. Working in the KRG is much easier, and a major draw.

Shell could go either way when it comes to its talks with the Kurdistan Regional Government. In the past, it has been weary of giving up its endeavors with the central government. It has been willing to deal with Baghdad, and even expand its operations in the south. At the same time, its profits look to be slim, Kurdistan offers a much easier business environment, and official threats of retaliation by the Oil Ministry appear to be feckless. Shell has followed a conservative course in Iraq however. That would point to it staying the course, and concentrating upon its three contracts in Basra rather than taking the jump into the north. That doesn’t mean it won’t follow that path in the future. Still, further details will have to emerge before Shell’s ultimate decision can be determined.

[burnsss]

Nouri Maliki Al-Tikriti henchmen are acting Bagdad Bob once again spreading lies and propaganda



Moscow Times
Gazprom Neft is still interested in Kurdistan's oil, a company source said, rebutting reports that it had frozen projects in the Iraqi province.

In August, Gazprom Neft, the oil arm of natural gas producer Gazprom, acquired interests in two blocks in Iraqi Kurdistan after similar moves by international rivals angered the central government in Baghdad.

The International Oil Daily cited Iraqi Oil Minister Abdul-Kareem Luaibi as saying that Baghdad had received a letter from Gazprom in which the company said it had frozen the contract with Kurdistan.

"Gazprom Neft is still working on these projects. The company is keeping its interest in Kurdistan," a Gazprom Neft source said.

A company spokeswoman declined to comment.

Gazprom Neft already has a project in Iraq, near the Iranian border, where it expects to produce about 15,000 barrels per day starting in 2013.

Baghdad was angered by the plans of some international majors, including ExxonMobil, to tap oil and gas in the semiautonomous region. The central government says the deals are illegal.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin said during a visit to Iraq that he hoped the Iraqi government would support Russian energy companies working in the country, Interfax reported.

"Our trade is not large so far, but we have major promising projects. Our companies are expanding their operations in Iraq," Putin said during talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. "I hope their work will expand steadily, and I do count on your support."

[burnsss]

ARBIL, Iraq: Iraqi Kurdistan will refine enough crude to satisfy local demand by next year, and may even begin exporting some products, Kurdistan's energy minister said on Monday.

Energy exports from the autonomous region are a sensitive issue for the central government in Baghdad which is locked in a long-running dispute with Kurdistan over control of oil and land along their internal border.

Kurdistan is short of products such as diesel and kerosene, filling the gap with around 15,000 barrels per day (bpd) of supply from Iraq's refineries, Kurdish officials say.

"In terms of the refinery, by next year we will be fully self-sufficient," Natural Resources Minister AshtiHawrami said at a conference in Arbil. "This year we are importing some products and we are receiving some small amounts from Baghdad, but by next year, we might even be exporting."

A major expansion of Kurdistan's Kalak refinery is expected to boost its capacity from 40,000 barrels per day to 100,000 bpd by the end of this year.

Kurdistan relies on the central government for a share of the national oil revenue. But the region is working to reduce its dependence on Baghdad, which says only it can define energy policy and control national oil exports.

At present, Kurdistan exports crude from its fields through a Baghdad-controlled pipeline to the Turkish port of Ceyhan. But it has already started trucking small amounts of fuel bi-products to Turkey in exchange for fuel.

The Kurdish region also plans to start exporting its oil along a new pipeline to the Turkish border by August 2013.

Relations between Baghdad and the regional government have been further strained since Kurdistan signed deals with oil majors such as Exxon and Chevron, contracts the central government rejects as illegal.

Hawrami said talks were underway with other oil companies interested in entering the region, and that more contracts were coming: "In the next few months, you'll see new names on the map," he said, without giving any details.

Last month, sources said Royal Dutch Shell, which has several large projects in the south, was considering options in the Kurdistan region, but Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister for Energy subsequently denied it. (Reuters)

[burnsss]

Exclusive Exxon quitting west Qrna field and heading to kurdistan I hope its true this maybe why Tikriti moves tanks to Kirkuk he will get his ass kicked
http://www.petroleum-economist.com/Arti ... rna-1.html

[alan131210]

it is true, milky asked potin i mean na3l to send lukoil to replace exxon , you all just wait till US elections is over, iraq is going down back to the stone age once more .

[burnsss]

it is true, milky asked potin i mean na3l to send lukoil to replace exxon , you all just wait till US elections is over, iraq is going down back to the stone age once more .

The USA must support kurdistan with weapons after this great betrayal supporting Assad, being iranian agent and communist russian lover.

[alan131210]

it is true, milky asked potin i mean na3l to send lukoil to replace exxon , you all just wait till US elections is over, iraq is going down back to the stone age once more .

The USA must support kurdistan with weapons after this great betrayal supporting Assad, being iranian agent and communist russian lover.

yes and a former US offical to iraq just said that "we will deal with iraq accordingly after the elections". RUDAW.

[burnsss]

it is true, milky asked potin i mean na3l to send lukoil to replace exxon , you all just wait till US elections is over, iraq is going down back to the stone age once more .

The USA must support kurdistan with weapons after this great betrayal supporting Assad, being iranian agent and communist russian lover.

yes and a former US offical to iraq just said that "we will deal with iraq accordingly after the elections". RUDAW.

Can you post the article please i could not find it