12 February 2010 Iraq sets up new oil player
Iraq has launched a fourth state oil company, with the new outfit - the Midland Oil Company - overseeing development of fields in the country's central belt.
The Midland Oil Company will join the North, South, and Maysan companies as the latest state-owned organisation tasked with boosting Iraq's oil production.
"We decided to establish the Middle Oil Company which will be responsible for developing the oilfields in Baghdad and surrounding provinces," ministry spokesman Assem Jihad told AFP.
"We took this decision following the country's recent decision to grant licences to foreign companies. The Middle Oil Company will supervise the new developments."
The company, named Sharikat Naft Wasat, translates as Middle Oil Company in Arabic, but the oil ministry said it will be known as the Midland Oil Company in English.
A previous Midland Oil Company existed under the rule of dictator Saddam Hussein, but it was amalgamated with the North Oil Company in the late 1980s.
A consortium of Russia's Gazprom (30%), Turkey's TPAO (7.5%), South Korea's Kogas (22.5%) and Malaysia's Petronas (15%) signed a deal to develop the 109-million-barrel Badra field, south-east of Baghdad, last month.
The state-owned Iraqi Oil Exploration Company, which will be managed by the soon to be formed Midland Oil Company, has a 25% stake in the deal.
The Midland Oil Company will also be responsible for managing oilfields in Anbar, Babil, Diyala, Diwaniyah, Karbala and Wasit provinces, according to the ministry.
Iraq has launched a fourth state oil company, with the new outfit - the Midland Oil Company - overseeing development of fields in the country's central belt.
The Midland Oil Company will join the North, South, and Maysan companies as the latest state-owned organisation tasked with boosting Iraq's oil production.
"We decided to establish the Middle Oil Company which will be responsible for developing the oilfields in Baghdad and surrounding provinces," ministry spokesman Assem Jihad told AFP.
"We took this decision following the country's recent decision to grant licences to foreign companies. The Middle Oil Company will supervise the new developments."
The company, named Sharikat Naft Wasat, translates as Middle Oil Company in Arabic, but the oil ministry said it will be known as the Midland Oil Company in English.
A previous Midland Oil Company existed under the rule of dictator Saddam Hussein, but it was amalgamated with the North Oil Company in the late 1980s.
A consortium of Russia's Gazprom (30%), Turkey's TPAO (7.5%), South Korea's Kogas (22.5%) and Malaysia's Petronas (15%) signed a deal to develop the 109-million-barrel Badra field, south-east of Baghdad, last month.
The state-owned Iraqi Oil Exploration Company, which will be managed by the soon to be formed Midland Oil Company, has a 25% stake in the deal.
The Midland Oil Company will also be responsible for managing oilfields in Anbar, Babil, Diyala, Diwaniyah, Karbala and Wasit provinces, according to the ministry.
http://www.upstreamonline.com/live/article206222.ece
