IRAQ

 

Baghdad Awards Three Blocks In Bid Round

 

Western oil majors gave Iraq’s fourth upstream licensing round on 30-31 May a wide berth, with tough terms and operating conditions resulting in just three of the 12 exploration blocks on offer being awarded. Rafiq Latta reports.

 

The results are a sharp contrast to the success of Baghdad’s three previous upstream auctions, and given the high prospectivity of the acreage involved, they will come as a...