Page 7 - MEOG Week 02 2021
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MEOG                                        PERFORMANCE                                               MEOG


       ShaMaran reaches Atrush milestone





        KURDISTAN        CANADIAN junior ShaMaran Petroleum last  for greater optimism.
                         week announced that a cumulative oil produc-  The Atrush partners have installed produc-
                         tion total of more than 40mn barrels had been  tion facilities with a capacity in excess of 50,000
                         reached at the Atrush oilfield in the Kurdistan  barrels per day (bpd), with 14 wells having been
                         Region of northern Iraq.             drilled, 10 of which are currently producing.
                           The company owns a 27.6% working interest   In its Q3 and 9M reporting, the company said
                         in the Atrush block, with operator the Abu Dhabi  that Atrush had produced at a year-to-date aver-
                         National Energy Company (TAQA) holding  age of 46,504 bpd, though it added the caveat that
                         47.4% and the Kurdistan Regional Government  “final 2020 production will depend principally
                         (KRG) a carried stake of 25%.        on well, facility and export pipeline uptimes and
                           Given the operator’s usual reluctance to  any unanticipated complications arising from
                         provide operational updates for the asset, the  the COVID‐19 pandemic.”
                         lack of an announcement from TAQA was   In the Q3 report, ShaMaran said: “Oil prices
                         unsurprising.                        in the third quarter of 2020 have recovered and
                           Meanwhile, ShaMaran said on December  stabilised relative to the volatility in prices which
                         28 that the partners had received a payment of  prevailed in the first two quarters of the year fol-
                         $14.6mn ($4.9mn net to ShaMaran) from the  lowing the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.
                         KRG for November Atrush oil sales.   At that time, the Atrush partners reacted quickly
                           This followed a gross payment of $16.1mn  to take responsible measures to scale back the
                         ($5.44mn  net)  for  October  sales  in  late  development programme in the current cycle”
                         November.                            while maintaining the flexibility to ramp up
                           For Erbil, maintaining reliable payments to  as soon as conditions allowed. The company’s
                         IOCs for sales has been problematic and the sit-  2020 production guidance of 44,000-50,000 bpd
                         uation has only been worsened by the pandemic,  remains unchanged.
                         though consecutive timely payments through   ShaMaran is expected to publish its Q4 and
                         the final few months of 2020 have given cause  full-year 2020 reports by the end of this month.™


                                                        POLICY

       Iraq and Jordan discussing




       renewing supply agreement






        IRAQ/JORDAN      THE governments of Iraq and Jordan are hold-  that, according to the Cabinet’s decision, the
                         ing discussions regarding the renewal of their  transportation cost was calculated at $11 from
                         agreement on crude oil supplies between the  Baiji to Jordan, and this is among the items of
                         two countries. A bilateral deal was signed in  bilateral agreements between the two countries,
                         February 2019. It states that 10,000 barrels per  and the supreme interest is valued by the country
                         day (bpd) of crude from Iraq should be imported  and the government.”
                         to cover around 7% of Jordan’s current demand.   Flows were steady from September 2019 until
                           After lengthy delays, the first batch of Iraqi  April 2020, giving a cumulative total of 2.44mn
                         crude was trucked from Baiji to Jordan via  barrels before cargoes began being unloaded
                         Kirkuk in September that year.       into Jordanian trucks at the border in an effort
                           At the time, it was reported that Jordan would  to halt the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).
                         purchase the oil at a $16 per barrel discount to   Shipments were severely affected by the pan-
                         Brent in order to cover the transport and devia-  demic and the resultant drop in oil price, with
                         tion in specifications with Iraqi goods exported  several pauses in supplies and no crude at all
                         through the port of Aqaba, receiving preferential  being sent to Jordan in August.
                         rates in return.                       Cargoes resumed in September following a
                           However, last week, in an interview with the  July agreement between Amman and Baghdad
                         Iraq News Agency (INA), Alaa al-Yasiri, gen-  on the resumption of oil exports, with Iraq com-
                         eral manager of Iraq’s state oil marketer SOMO,  pleting all of the required logistical preparations.
                         said: “The Oil Marketing Company does not  Jordanian Energy Minister Hala Zawati said that
                         have differential prices, but rather fixed prices  crude flows had stopped after prices fell below
                         according to the market … Jordan stipulated  $20 per barrel.™



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