Big guns moving in despite the exploration setbacks

By Nassir Shirkhani

 17 January 2013 06:34 GMT

Iraqi Kurdistan is so far proving a challenging exploration destination for larger international oil companies that belatedly joined smaller rivals in the hope of striking it rich in the mountains of the autonomous region.

While early birds — mostly minnows with daring appetite for risk — cherrypicked the most promising acreage, some of the later investors have little to show for often-costly campaigns in the tough geology of Kurdistan.

Recent months have seen a string of dry holes amid a heightened pace of drilling in a region dubbed as the “exploration capital of the world’’.

“One thing that will stick in my mind is a wonderful new phrase — the exploration capital of the world. We are proud of that,’’ ­Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Oil Minister Ashti…

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