Page 22 - MEOG Week 01 2021

MEOG NEWS IN BRIEF MEOG

POLICY federal and regional governments over the Iranian oil fields in the Persian Gulf have
Region’s budget share, which is dependent on shown that the estimations of the in-place oil
Kurdistan to hold vote on KRG oil exports to Baghdad. in these fields have increased by more than
740 million barrels, Shana reported.
The KRG agreed to send over 250
new oil minister thousand barrels of oil per day to the federal out by the Iranian Offshore Oil Company
Based on the Fast Track studies carried
government as part of the 2021 Iraqi Budget
The Kurdistan Region’s parliament will bill, Talabani announced last week. (IOOC) on Hendijan, Behregansar, Abouzar
convene on Wednesday to vote on the next “If the budget is approved, we, as the KRG, and Nowruz oil fields, the total in-place oil
Minister of Natural Resources, 19 months are ready to deliver 250,000 barrels per day of reserves of these fields have increased by 742
after the cabinet was formed, a parliamentary Kurdistan Region oil through SOMO [State million barrels compared to the last approved
source told Rudaw. Organization of Marketing of Oil],” Talabani study carried on the fields and has reached 9.9
The Kurdistan Regional Government said following a four-hour parliament billion barrels, an official with the company
(KRG) has nominated Dr Kamal Atroshi meeting, adding that the KRG has “always announced.
for the position, the KRG spokesperson wanted to reach a comprehensive agreement According to Ali Khajavi, the mentioned
announced on Sunday. with the federal government.” studies have been completed in collaboration
Atroshi was nominated by Prime Minister The Kurdistan Region’s allocation of the with capable domestic companies in less
Masrour Barzani, Jotiar Adil said in a federal budget has been a point of contention than nine months and with average monthly
statement. “It is our hope that the Kurdistan with Baghdad. Iraq has not sent the progress of over 11 percent.
Parliament includes this topic in its next autonomous region money for several months The new findings indicate that the total
session and provides a vote of confidence,” the of 2020 amid oil disputes, preventing the KRG extractable oil from the mentioned fields has
statement said. from paying the salaries of its public servants. also increased by 217 million barrels to reach
Accoring to LinkedIn, Atroshi previously The dispute between the two governments more than 3.2 billion barrels, Khajavi said.
served as an Energy Advisor to PM Barzani was further complicated on November 12 “Considering the oil price at $45 per barrel,
in 2019, after decades working in oil and gas when Iraqi MPs passed the Fiscal Deficit the added volume is equivalent to about $10
companies across Europe, the Middle East Coverage Bill to approve loans for civil servant billion,” he added.
and North America, including in Kuwait and salaries in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region for According to the official, conducting
Canada. He obtained his PhD in Geophysics the last two months of this year. Master Development Plan (MDP) studies
in Exploration and Production from the The bill passed with a majority vote, despite is the most important tool for optimizing
University of Bordeaux in France, and worked a walk-out staged by Kurdish MPs, who were production, choosing the appropriate way
as a researcher at the French Institute of angered that Erbil is obliged to hand over an of reservoir development, and ultimately
Petroleum, according to the official. unspecified amount of oil in exchange for increasing the recovery factor of hydrocarbon
The ministry has gone without a funds- a clause they say was not in the original reservoirs.
permanent minister for over a year. PM bill. MDP studies typically include the
Barzani served as acting minister when his RUDAW processing and interpretation of seismic
government came to power, following Ashti data, complete studies of basic geology and
Hawrami, who had served as minister since static modeling, complete studies of basic
2006. Atroshi’s nomination comes at a crucial OIL reservoir engineering, history matching
time for the KRG, with a recent agreement and construction of dynamic simulation
made between Erbil and Baghdad to end oil Iran’s oil reserves in models, preparation and implementation
disputes. of production scenarios, and finally
A KRG delegation led by Deputy PM Persian Gulf increase complete economic studies of the reservoir
Qubad Talabani went to Baghdad early last development project.
month amid rising tensions between the Recent studies on the reservoirs of four IOOC, a subsidiary of the National Iranian

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