Thursday, March 29, 2007
Foreign firms offer to develop Missan's oil fields
Oil
(Azzaman) - The authorities in the southern province of Missan say they have received several requests from foreign firms to develop the province’s gigantic oil fields. The officials refused to name the firms but said the relative stability which the province currently enjoys was luring both foreign and Iraq entrepreneurs to invest.
The province, which borders Iran, is among Iraq’s most impoverished with a rickety infrastructure. It was a battle scene in the eight years of Iraq-Iran war. “The provincial council has received offers from international and Arab firms to invest in the oil sector,” said Taha al-Dhaif, head of the Development Commission in the province. He said investors were also interested in developing the province’s tourist infrastructure and have made several offers to construct hotels and other tourist installations.
Some of the finest Iraqi marshes are situated in the province and the officials said the wetlands were flourishing once again and the authorities were considering ways to turn into tourist attractions. Dhaif said the council has an offer from a foreign firm to develop the massive West Gurna oil field, one of the largest unexplored oil fields in the country.
He said the council was keen to attract investors to help reduce the high unemployment rate and fight poverty. The province relies mainly on agricultural produce as its huge oil fields, with billions of barrels of proven oil reserves, remain undeveloped. Dhaif said the province was in need of power stations and it has already received an offer to construct one. There have been requests to construct housing apartments, and rehabilitate idle industries such as the prefab factory.
Iraq has the third largest proven oil reserves in the world behind Saudi Arabia and Iran. It is total proven reserves are estimated at 112 billion barrels, with as many as 220 billion barrels of resourced deemed probable. Of the country’s 74 discovered and evaluated oil fields, only 15 have been developed.
Some of the finest Iraqi marshes are situated in the province and the officials said the wetlands were flourishing once again and the authorities were considering ways to turn into tourist attractions. Dhaif said the council has an offer from a foreign firm to develop the massive West Gurna oil field, one of the largest unexplored oil fields in the country.
He said the council was keen to attract investors to help reduce the high unemployment rate and fight poverty. The province relies mainly on agricultural produce as its huge oil fields, with billions of barrels of proven oil reserves, remain undeveloped. Dhaif said the province was in need of power stations and it has already received an offer to construct one. There have been requests to construct housing apartments, and rehabilitate idle industries such as the prefab factory.
Iraq has the third largest proven oil reserves in the world behind Saudi Arabia and Iran. It is total proven reserves are estimated at 112 billion barrels, with as many as 220 billion barrels of resourced deemed probable. Of the country’s 74 discovered and evaluated oil fields, only 15 have been developed.
Labels: foreign firms, Maysan, Missan, oil fields, Taha al-Dhaif, West Qurna
