Author: Editor

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Shell plans Major Expansion at BGC

By John Lee.

Having sold its stake in the West Qurna 1 project to Japan’s Itochu, Shell is now said to be “fully committed” to the giant Basra Gas Company (BGC), which captures gas from Iraq’s southern oilfields.

Frits Klap, managing director of BGC, told Reuters that processing capacity has more than tripled to 938 million standard cubic feet (scf) per day since operations started in 2013, and further expansion is planned:

“We are going to go for something called BNGL, or Basra NGL (natural gas liquids) expansion, which really is going to take us from 1 bcf to 1.4 bcf through two trains, each of 200 million scf per day.”

Shell has a 44-percent stake in the $17-billion, 25-year project, with Iraq having 51 percent, and Japan’s Mitsubishi 5 percent.

More here.

(Source: Reuters)

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Oilfield Service Contracts Explained

By Alessandro Bacci.

Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Alessandro Bacci is an independent energy consultant in relation to business strategy and corporate diplomacy (policy, government, and public affairs). Much of his activity is linked to the MENA region, an area where he lived for four years. Alessandro is now based in London, United Kingdom (www.alessandrobacci.com). A multilingual professional, Alessandro holds a Bachelor of Laws and Master of Laws from the University of Florence (Italy), a Master in Public Affairs from Sciences Po (France), and a Master in Public Policy from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (Singapore).    

The following is a presentation on oilfield service contracts that I gave to the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (A.I.P.N.) in London on April 26, 2018 (click page numbers below):

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New Contracts Signed to operate Majnoon Oilfield

By John Lee.

Basra Oil Company (BOC) has signed contracts with the Chinese company Anton Oilfield Services Group (Antonoil) and the US company KBR to operate and maintain the Majnoon oil field.

A statement from the Ministry of Oil put the value of the contracts at $118 million, adding that there would be “other secondary contracts” to follow.

BOC will take over operations at Majnoon from Shell by the end of June.

(Source: Ministry of Oil)

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Kuwait Energy starts Producing Gas at Siba

By John Lee.

Kuwait Energy has started producing natural gas from the Siba field, south of Basra, on Wednesday.

Oil Minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi [Allibi, Luiebi] (pictured) announced an inital production rate of 25 million cubic feet a day (mcf/d), increasing to 100 mcf/d by the end of the year.

Kuwait Energy was awarded a 20 year Gas Development and Production Service Contract (GDPSC) for the Siba field in June 2011, granting the company operatorship and 45 percent revenue interest, but it farmed out a 20 percent stake to the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) in October 2016.

(Source: Ministry of Oil)

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Kuwait Energy starts Producing Gas at Siba

By John Lee.

Kuwait Energy has started producing natural gas from the Siba field, south of Basra, on Wednesday.

Oil Minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi [Allibi, Luiebi] (pictured) announced an inital production rate of 25 million cubic feet a day (mcf/d), increasing to 100 mcf/d by the end of the year.

Kuwait Energy was awarded a 20 year Gas Development and Production Service Contract (GDPSC) for the Siba field in June 2011, granting the company operatorship and 45 percent revenue interest, but it farmed out a 20 percent stake to the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) in October 2016.

(Source: Ministry of Oil)

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Iraq Awards New Oilfield Licences: FULL LIST

By John Lee.

Iraq’s Ministy of Oil has awarded all four development projects, and two of the seven exploration blocks, that it offered in its fifth auction of oil licences.

Only nine of the 26 companies originally pre-qualified took part in the auction, with majors such as Lukoil (Russia), ExxonMobil (US) and Total (France) not bidding.

Development blocks:

  • Gilabat-Qumar, in Diyala: Crescent Petroleum (UAE)
  • Khashim Ahmer-Injana, in Diyala: Crescent Petroleum (UAE)
  • Huwaiza, in Missan (Maysan): Geo Jade Petroleum (China)
  • Khudher Al-Mai [Khider al-Mai], in Basra and Muthana: Crescent Petroleum (UAE)

Exploration blocks:

  • Naft Khana, in Diyala: Geo-Jade Petroleum (China)
  • Sindibad [Sindbad] field in Basra: United Energy Group (Hong Kong)
  • Zurbatiya [Zurbatia], in Wasit and Diyala: not awarded
  • Shihabi in Missan and Wasit: not awarded
  • Fao, in Basra: not awarded
  • Jebel Sanam [Jabal Sanam], in Basra: not awarded
  • Offshore Gulf block: not awarded

Abdul Mahdi al-Ameedi, director general of the Petroleum Contracts and Licensing Directorate (PCLD), told Reuters that the failure of five blocks to attract bids was due to a combination of factors, including the fact that some of them cover former battlefields, some are hard to access, and the one offshore plot needs more data.

He said another round could be held for those five blocks.

More details here from Iraq Oil Report (subscription required)

(Sources: Iraq Oil Report, Reuters, Associated Press, AFP)

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Gazprom Neft commissions Second Well at Sarqala

Gazprom Neft subsidiary Gazprom Neft Middle East B.V. has commissioned a second well — the Sarqala-2 — at its Sarqala field (within the Garmian block), located in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI).

The new well is currently producing 11,000 barrels per day (bpd), with potential to increase this to 15,000. Total daily production at the field has now increased more than two-fold, exceeding 21,000 bpd.

Sergei Petrov, General Director, Gazprom Neft Middle East B.V. commented:

“The Sarqala-2 well is operating under high reservoir pressure and temperature. But by using exceptional technical solutions in well construction we have been able to make significant reductions in operating costs, as well as bringing the project in on time.”

Denis Sugaipov, Director of Major Projects Upstream at Gazprom Neft, added:

“Thanks to the commissioning of this new well we have been able to confirm our geological prognoses and obtain updated information on strata composition at the Sarqala field. The geology of the KRI is, generally, under-researched, so this new well is of major importance in terms of gaining knowledge and experience of the field.”

First oil from the Garmian block was obtained in 2011, with commercial crude shipments from the field commencing as early as 2015. As at 15.04.2018 total cumulative production at the field stood at seven million barrels of oil.

The first phase of expanding gathering and treatment capacity to 25,000 bpd is now complete, with work continuing on expanding infrastructure to accommodate 35,000 bpd. Drilling of the Sarqala-3 well is planned for Q3 2018, completing Phase I of field development.

(Source: Gazprom Neft)

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IBBC Spring Conference a Huge Success

The Iraq Britain Business Council (IBBC) held its annual Spring Conference at the Mansion House in London and a newly formatted second day forum for Iraqi and UK SMEs to discuss business opportunities at the Royal Overseas League on the 24th and 25th of April.

The event proved to be a huge success, with record attendances and expert speaker contribution fully captivating the positive and progressive forecast for Iraq in 2018. The Conference was chaired by Rasmi Al Jabri, Deputy Chairman and Iraq representative of IBBC, who’s significant standing in Iraq was fundamental to the success of the event.

The first day of the conference, entitled ‘Iraq: Building a diversified and modern economy’ was held at the Mansion House, home of the Lord Mayor of London and featured numerous Iraqi and UK politicians, industry experts, academics, government advisers and more. The day featured the newly incorporated roundtable discussions, which facilitated greater face time with industry experts and politicians and more in-depth discussions.

The main panel sessions focused on a wide range of sectors and industries to fully address the investment opportunities, need for diversification of the economy and progress of Iraq over the last year:

SESSION 1: Finance ‘Major projects – the criteria for and process of obtaining finance for projects in Iraq’

SESSION 2: Technology ‘Developing Iraq’s digital economy’

SESSION 3: Energy and Industry ‘The need for locally available products and services – how two sectors can help diversify Iraq’s Economy’

SESSION 4: Education and Training ‘Developing human capital in Iraq’

A high-level delegation from the Government of Iraq was present, including H.E. Mohammed Shyaa Al-Sudani, Minister of Social Affairs & Acting Minister of Industry and Minerals, Mr Khadhem Al Hassani, Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister of Iraq and H.E. Dr Salih Husain Ali Al Tamimi, the Iraqi Ambassador to the UK, who were all invited to give opening addresses to IBBC Members and guests at the conference.

H.E. Dr Abdul Kariem Al Faisal, Chairman of the PM’s Advisory Commission and Mr Abbas Nasser, Legal Advisor to the Ministry of Transport and H.E. Nawzad Hadi, Governor of Erbil also attended the first day of the conference and held RoundTable discussions with IBBC Member representatives.

Several UK Government officials participated, including Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne, The Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Iraq, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan and IBBC President, Jonathan Wilks CMG, Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the Republic of Iraq and Baroness Fairhead CBE, Minister of State for Trade and Export Promotion, Department for International Trade, which demonstrates the continuing trend of increased bilateral trade and relations over the last few years between the UK & Iraq.

(Source: IBBC)

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DNO Expands and Accelerates Kurdistan Operations

DNO ASA, the Norwegian oil and gas operator, today announced expansion and acceleration of operations in the Kurdistan region of Iraq while building up its North Sea exposure.

First quarter revenues, the highest in nearly four years, stood at USD 142 million and net profit at USD 18 million. The Company exited the quarter with cash balances of USD 518 million plus USD 76 million in treasury shares and marketable securities.

The Company added a third license in Kurdistan following government and partner approvals of the previously announced transaction with ExxonMobil. Effective 10 April 2018, DNO assumed operatorship of the Baeshiqa license with a 40 percent (32 percent participating) interest alongside ExxonMobil, Turkish Energy Company and the Kurdistan Regional Government.

At the Tawke license, the Company fast tracked development of the Peshkabir field with three new wells. The recently completed Peshkabir-4 well will shortly undergo production testing and the Peshkabir-5 well is drilling ahead at 2,250 meters. The Peshkabir-6 well was spudded as a development well last week and will also explore the field’s deeper Triassic formation.

“We have the wind on our back,” said DNO’s Executive Chairman Bijan Mossavar-Rahmani, “with higher oil prices, timely export payments in Kurdistan, a growing portfolio of quality assets, efficient drilling and bold strategy execution.“

On the DNO-operated Tawke license containing the Peshkabir and Tawke fields, 15,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd) of production from two Peshkabir wells are comingled with 90,000 bopd from the flagship Tawke field for export through Turkey.

A new Tawke Cretaceous well was brought onstream earlier this month at more than 5,000 bopd. The Company will drill additional Tawke development wells in 2018 following mobilization of a fourth rig.

Elsewhere, the Company acquired 28.71 percent of North Sea-focused Faroe Petroleum plc at a price of GBP 1.25 per share through four separate transactions in April, complementing DNO’s existing portfolio of 19 exploration licenses offshore Norway and the United Kingdom.

DNO’s current cash balance stands at USD 356 million plus USD 280 million in treasury shares and marketable securities. The Company’s outstanding bond debt remains at USD 400 million and the equity ratio at 61 percent.

(Source: DNO)

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Iraq could transport 1m bpd via Aqaba

By John Lee.

Iraq could transport up to a million barrels of oil per day through the Jordanian port of Aqaba (pictured), according to a report from The National.

Ali Nazar Faeq Al Shatari, deputy director general for the State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) told The National:

“That project is still in place and we’re going to go ahead with it. We need another outlet for our crude oil,”

There has been little detail on the scheme’s timeline for completion or the scope of the project.

More here.

(Source: The National)