Iraqi province looks to court ExxonMobil

Talks: Nineveh province courts US giant ExxonMobil

AFP/SCANPIX

related stories

By News Wires

 03 July 2012 18:57 GMT

Iraq's Nineveh province wants to start talks with US giant ExxonMobil about developing potentially huge oil reserves in a move certain to reignite conflict with central government over control of the country's energy resources, according to a report.

ExxonMobil, the world's largest publicly traded energy company, infuriated Iraq last year by signing production sharing contracts with the autonomous Kurdistan region.

Two of the six exploration blocks lie in areas claimed by the northern Nineveh province and Kurdistan and the Bashiqa block may be the prize of the package, industry sources told Reuters.

Nineveh Governor Atheel al-Nujaifi said the province should have a stake in those contracts and is embarking on a "strategic four-stage plan" to deal with ExxonMobil and other foreign oil companies and co-operate with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

"Taking…

Become an Upstream member!

Membership includes a subscription to our weekly newspaper providing in-depth news from the energy industry, plus full-access to this site and its archives. Still not convinced? Try our free trial.

Already a member?

Login

Upstream share price index