Iraq to auction 30 oil and gas projects this month

Reuters/Essam Al-Sudani

Iraq will auction 30 new oil and gas projects in two licensing rounds before the end of April.

The bidding round will be held on April 27, Reuters reported, citing an oil ministry statement.

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Last October Iraq passed a long-awaited oil and gas law, which will help the country attract more international investments into the hydrocarbon industry and boost government revenues. 

Ali Metwally, an economist focused on the Middle East based in London, told AGBI the revision of the regulatory framework has the potential to make Iraq a more appealing investment destination for international oil companies. 

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Western oil companies have been pushing for production-sharing for a long time as Iraq is seen as a big political and economic risk by their boards, said Douglas Silliman, former American ambassador in Iraq and Kuwait and president at The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. 

Hydrocarbons contribute to about 50 percent of the country’s GDP and account for around 85 percent of total economic activity, Mazhar Mohammed Saleh, a financial adviser to Iraq’s prime minister Mohammed Shia’ al Sudani, said.