Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Total and Chevron submit development plans for Majnoon
Oil
(Dow Jones) - Oil giants Total SA (TOT) and Chevron Corp. (CVX) have jointly submitted to the Iraqi Oil Ministry a study on the development of one of Iraq's biggest oil fields, Majnoon, in the south of the country, a ministry statement said Tuesday. "Total and Chevron jointly prepared studies about Majnoon oil field and were submitted to the ministry on the form of a memorandum of understanding," said the statement, a copy of which was obtained by Dow Jones Newswires.
"The ministry has set up a committee headed by Director General of the South Oil Company, Abdul Jabbar Lauby, to study the possibility of signing a memorandum of understanding with the two companies," the statement said. However, if a memorandum of understanding is signed with these two companies that doesn't imply they have been promised the right to develop the field, the statement noted.
"The ministry has set up a committee headed by Director General of the South Oil Company, Abdul Jabbar Lauby, to study the possibility of signing a memorandum of understanding with the two companies," the statement said. However, if a memorandum of understanding is signed with these two companies that doesn't imply they have been promised the right to develop the field, the statement noted.
Labels: Abdul Jabbar Lauby, Chevron Corp., Iraqi oil ministry, Majnoon, South Oil Company, Total SA
Thursday, August 09, 2007
Total and Chevron to work together in Iraq
Oil
(Times online) - Two of the world’s biggest oil companies have signed an agreement to work together on projects in Iraq in the first clear sign that Western energy companies are preparing to enter the country. Reports yesterday revealed that Total had teamed up with Chevron and that they were putting together plans for Majnoon, the fourth-biggest oilfield in Iraq, with estimated potential reserves of 12 billion barrels.
Elf, now part of Total, negotiated a contract to run Majnoon with Saddam Hussein in the late 1990s. Both Total and Chevron refused to comment, but industry sources said that the two companies had met Iraqi officials to discuss a services agreement to develop the field. While less lucrative than a pro-duction-sharing agreement, where companies discover and sell on the oil, experts said that it would give them a vital foothold for other deals.
Iraq holds an estimated 110 billion barrels of oil, with more than half still to be developed, offering huge opportunities to Western companies desperate for new reserves. So far, companies such as Total, BP, Shell and Exxon have limited themselves to helping the Iraqi Oil Ministry to train junior staff and pull together data recorded under Saddam.
BP, however, is understood to have been asked to look into the potential of Kirkuk in the north. Shell is thought to have studied Rumaila, the country’s biggest oilfield. Muhammad-Ali Zainy, a former oil official in the Iraqi Government, said: “Iraq is the last remaining frontier that offers so much potential. International oil companies will be in Iraq, but in what form it is difficult to tell.”
Iraq is expected to ratify a petroleum law that would allow deals with Western companies to take place next month. However, experts believe that it could take years for companies to feel confident in sending contractors to the unstable country. The Irish-owned Petrel Resources is one of four minnows operating in Iraq under a contract to develop the Subba and Luhais field. Dave Horgan, managing director, said: “The big companies will be chomping at the bit to sign a deal. They will then hope they can delay any work for two or three years until the security scares die down.”
Labels: BP, Chevron, Elf, Kirkuk, Majnoon, Muhammad-Ali Zainy, Petrel Resources, Rumaila field, Shell, Subba and Luhais field, Total
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Oil minister says negotiations with foreign companies have not yet begun
Oil
(Iraq Directory) Iraqi Oil Minister, Hussein Shahrastani, said on Thursday that Iraq has not yet begun negotiations with the major international oil companies on the development of its energy sector; although, these companies are still waiting impatiently. Shahrastani said, "We are not negotiating with any major oil companies at the moment and we are awaiting the parliamentary approval to the new oil law which is likely to take place before the end of May".
The minister added that almost all international oil companies had interest in working in Iraq, "We have memorandums of understanding with almost each of these companies; they are preparing themselves, but there are no negotiations on the development of any particular field". The new law provides for the establishment of an Iraqi National Oil Company, which will be responsible for the main oil fields, the newly discovered and the productive. Major international oil companies are focusing on these fields such as West Qurna, Majnoon and Bin-Omar.
During the time of the late President Saddam Hussein, a consortium of Russian companies led by “LUKoil” signed an agreement to develop the West Qurna field, but Iraq canceled that agreement in 2002. Iraq is also reviewing an agreement to develop Al-Ahdab field signed with the Chinese National Petroleum Corporation and the Chinese company NORINCO for weapons manufacture. The French company Total, also, signed by initials some deals to develop the fields of Majnoon and Bin-Omar.
Labels: Bin-Omar, Hussain al-Shahrastani, Iraqi National Oil Company, LUKoil, Majnoon, NORINCO, Total, West Qurna
