ExxonMobil may lose other Iraq oil contract on Kurdish deal

November 11, 2011 | Budget & Investment, Middle East

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ExxonMobil Corp. could lose its current contract to develop the West Qurna oil field in Iraq if it’s signed additional deals with the Kurdistan Regional Government, said an official with Iraq’s central government Friday.

“Exxon should choose between either continuing with its deal with the Kurdistan Regional Government or lose its contract in southern Iraq,” said Abdul Mahdi al-Ameedi, head of petroleum contracts and licensing directorate at Iraq’s Oil Ministry, in an interview with Dow Jones Newswires.

Iraq’s central government sent ExxonMobil three warning letters before it signed its deal to explore for oil and gas with the KRG, al-Ameedi said. “The letters stressed that, according to regulations of the central government, any company which signs deals with the KRG wouldn’t be allowed to work in the center and south of the country,” he said.

Iraq’s council of ministers are expected to meet immediately after the Muslim Eid holiday to decide whether ExxonMobil’s existing contract to develop the super giant West Qurna oil field remains valid, he said.