Jabbar Al-Luaibi

Former Director General of South Oil Co and oil ministry advisor Jabbar al-Luaibi discusses in an interview with Ruba Husari in Dubai May 16, 2009 the state of the oil fields in southern Iraq and the reasons behind the recent loss in production capacity at Iraq’s major producing oil fields.

Q: You brought the oil sector back from the ashes in 2003 and ramped up production till you achieved an unprecedented peak in 2007. Why the sudden deterioration and the loss of production capacity now?

A: It’s true, the oil production profile was almost zero after the end of the war in 2003. We restarted production immediately at 50,000 b/d once the war ended in April and we were already producing 500,000…

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Thamir Al-Ghadban

Former Oil Minister and Chief Advisor to the Iraqi Prime Minister Thamir al-Ghadban talks to Ruba Husari in London April 29, 2009

Q: What are the chances that the first bid round concludes according to schedule this summer?

A: Based on what has been done so far starting from the announcement of the first licensing round last year and all the steps that followed, including the road-show in London, the workshop in Istanbul, the continuous updating of the contracts and other documents and the main milestones like the final tender protocol sent out to participating companies recently, it’s clear to me that the ministry is doing its best to meet its targets. A two-day meeting with the oil companies is planned for…

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1st bid round . 2nd bid round . al-Ghadban . contractor . Field Operating Division . final tender protocol . hydrocarbon law . Kirkuk . ministry of oil . MOC . model contract . Nahr bin Umar . Nassiriya . NOC . oil fields . operator . Rumaila . SOC . Thamir The Interview

Iraq: More Momentum

26 September 2008

Judging by the way preparations are going at the oil ministry in Baghdad, Iraq’s second postwar bid round promises to be even more controversial than the first.

When launched in late June with six producing oil fields and two gas fields, the first offering was slammed by some as selling off the country’s crown jewels. According to plans now being drawn up, Iraqi Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahristani could offer 16 more oil fields to international oil companies as early as October. Critics claim this would effectively place all of Iraq’s oil production in foreign hands.

Discussions are still continuing at the ministry’s headquarters to finalize the list of fields to be offered in the second round. If all preparatory work…

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2nd bid round . CNPC . contracts . gas fields . Gharraf . Halfayah . hydrocarbon law . INOC . Lukoil . Majnoon . Nahr bin Umar . Nassiriyah . NOC . oil fields . operating companies . PSA . Qayarah . SOC . tender . Total . WEst Kifl 2008

Iraq Finalizes Fields to Be Offered in Bid Round Next Week

26 December 2008

Iraq’s oil ministry decided Wednesday to launch its second postwar bid round for oil and gas field development with 14 oil fields and two gas fields spread over Iraq’s regions, ministry sources said Wednesday. The official announcement will be made by Iraqi Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahristani in Baghdad on Dec. 31.

Opinions in the ministry are divided over whether Iraq should launch a new bidding round before the first one has been concluded or has made significant progress. The first licensing round was announced at the end of June and so far the ministry has only published an initial tender protocol and a draft model contract, which were made available to international oil companies that have paid for data…

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2nd bid round . Badrah . East Baghdad . gas fields . Gharraf . Gullabat . Halfaya . Khashm al-Ahmar . Kifl . Lukoil . Majnoon . Merjan . Nahr bin Umar . Najmah . Nassiriyah . Naudoman . oil fields . PSC . Qamar . Qayarah . Siba . Total . WEst Kifl . West Qurna 2008