Tuesday, 4 May, 2021 - 05:15
Oil tankers are seen at a terminal of Sinopec Yaogang oil depot in Nantong, Jiangsu province, China June 11, 2019. (Reuters) Asharq Al-Awsat
Iraq is considering buying ExxonMobil s stake in the southern West Qurna 1 oilfield through state-owned Basra Oil Co (BOC), the country s oil minister said on Monday.
The oil ministry is discussing BOC taking ownership of the Exxon stake in West Qurna 1 and leading the project, as happened with Majnoon, Ihsan Abdul Jabbar told a news conference, referring to the huge Majnoon oilfield in Iraq s south.
Iraq said last month that ExxonMobil was seeking to sell its 32.7% stake in the West Qurna 1 field, and that the oil ministry had started discussions with US oil companies over a possible purchase.
Iraq will invest $3bn in the Basra Gas Company over the next five years,
Iraqi News Agency reported on May 3 citing a statement by the country s oil minister.
Oil minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar said that the aim is to increase the gas production capacity by 40%. The investment will help generate about 2,000 jobs, he added.
Basra Gas Company is a joint venture established by the Iraqi government, Shell and Mitsubishi.