Champagne and crude in the other Iraq 16 Feb 2012 Kurdistan’s growing clan of millionaires is undeterred by military checkpoints, Una Galani reports. Investors in the semi-autonomous Iraqi region could get rich too if disputes over oil are resolved with Baghdad. With Turkey holding the key, pressure is building for a solution.
Something has got to give on Iraqi oil 9 Feb 2012 Total is expected to join Exxon Mobil in risking investments in southern Iraq by signing deals with the semi-autonomous Kurds in defiance of Baghdad. Statoil wants out of Iraq altogether. The oil giants are right to test Iraq’s resolve.
Iraq should cut down telco listing ambitions 26 Jan 2012 The country’s three big telecom operators must list to meet their licence agreements. But the $5 bln move would overwhelm Iraq’s tiny exchange. With little need for cash, the companies are stalling. If Iraq wants to see action, it should at least cut the offer size.
Exxon bets its size, not troops, will help in Iraq 20 Dec 2011 American forces may have left, but the world-dominating U.S. oil giant is still willing to take risks. Exxon is playing Baghdad off with the Kurdish government, wagering the spoils are worth it and that the company is too important for Iraq’s own oil wealth to be forced out.
Iraq’s oil ambition looks fragile 15 Sep 2011 The oil-rich country is on the verge of lowering its official output targets and exports have been disrupted. Infrastructure is a major problem. But the politics at home and away mean Iraq’s path to becoming a global oil giant again is set to get longer and tougher.
Tony Hayward joins risky Kurdish oil rush 7 Sep 2011 The ex-BP boss’s M&A vehicle has landed its first target, a $4 bln merger with Kurdistan’s top oil producer. The deal is part regulatory arbitrage, and part a bet that Iraqi politics will turn good for oil firms. On conventional metrics, it’s a bargain. But it brings major risks.