A History of Waste

Iraq is struggling between the urge to become a regional – and eventually an international – player on the gas scene and the need to supply a domestic market whose demand for gas for power generation is expected to continue rising drastically. That urge is exacerbated by the KRG’s ability to conclude swift deals to export gas regardless of whether such deals – which, like exporting oil, would require state to state agreements to export gas via Turkey – will materialise or not.

The Iraqi oil ministry has dropped the option to export oil it had offered to international oil companies bidding in its third bid round to develop three gas fields, after realising that that option is unrealistic in view…

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Electricity Woes

Baghdad – Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, while standing by his resigning minister of electricity Karim Wahid, blamed the latter for raising people’s expectations and promising quick solutions to the electricity problems. The truth is, he said, the situation will not improve until the projects to build new power plants and install turbines contracted from GE and Siemens are done within two years. But would they?

Maliki is committing the same mistake of making promises neither he nor any other prime minister who will succeed him can realistically deliver on. The fact is Iraq does not currently have the means to finance the dozen or so power plants planned nor does it have the gas feedstock ready to supply them.

Political bickering…

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associated gas . electricity . gas . gas fields . GE . karim wahid . non-associated gas . oil ministry . power generation . power plants . Shell . Siemens The View from Baghdad

Gas Challenge

The most recent bid round launched this month for the three gas fields of Akkas, Mansouriah and Siba, promises to be challenging for both sides; the Iraqi oil ministry and the international oil companies, not least because it involves a third party: the electricity sector.

The non-associated gas to be produced from the three fields, estimated collectively at a minimum of 700 MMcf/d to 900 MMcf/d will be allocated as feedstock to existing power plants and planned ones to enter into operation within the next five years. The power sector requires at least double that volume to operate existing gas-fired power plants and plants currently being built. Future power plants planned for the next five years would require double that amount.…

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3rd Licensing Round – Factbox

3rd Bid Round Fields Map

Updated 3rd Licensing Round Timeline

Prequalified Companies

Fields Basic Data- table

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