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Baghdad waits on Ahdab plan



By Upstream staff 

Iraq expects exploration outfit Al Waha, part-owned by China National Petroleum Corporation, to submit revised technical proposals for developing the Ahdab oilfield by the end of May, Iraqi Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said today.

In March, Iraq asked Al Waha to look into drilling a single well at Ahdab and then employing horizontal drilling techniques, rather than sinking several wells into valuable agricultural land.

Shahristani said at the time that the company would submit a proposal with revised drilling techniques by the end of April, but that is now expected by the end of this month.

"They are supposed to come back with revised technical proposals by the end of May. After that we can enter contractual negotiations," Shahristani told Reuters on the sidelines of an oil ministers' meeting in Saudi Arabia.

He said the final value of the project would depend on the revised Chinese proposals.

Before the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, China had agreed to a $700 million deal with Saddam Hussein's government to develop the Ahdab oilfield.

Iraq has sent to parliament a draft law that will help set a framework for foreign companies investing in Iraq's oil industry.

The law stipulates that all contracts signed by the regions and during Saddam's era would be reviewed, to ensure they were in the best interests of the country.


Wednesday, 02 May, 2007, 11:22 GMT  | last updated: Wednesday, 02 May, 2007, 11:22 GMT

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