Thread: Iraq/Dinar News. (before Jan.20,2007)

Iraq leaders agree draft oil law
Iraqi production has fallen from 3.5 million barrels per day to around two million since March 2003 [EPA]

Iraq's Oil Committee has agreed a final draft of an oil law that sets rules for sharing revenues and boosting output.



The oil law aims to bring in billions of dollars of foreign investment, Asim Jihad, the oil ministry spokesman, said on Wednesday.


The draft was drawn up by senior national and regional leaders and calls for a federal committee headed by the prime minister to oversee all future oil contracts.



The oil law will review existing deals signed under Saddam Hussein or by the Kurdish regional government, Jihad said.


"The committee has finalised the draft of the law last night which has been approved unanimously by all the members of the committee and it will be before the cabinet early next week," Jihad said.



Agreement



The US has pressured the national unity government to pass an oil law to help settle potentially explosive disputes among Iraq's ethnic and sectarian communities over the division of the world's third biggest known crude oil reserves.



"The law sets clear restrictions that all contracts will ensure the best benefit for Iraq"

Asim Jihad, Iraq oil ministry spokesman
"Everybody sees this law as a big achievement and as a national project. There are no differences on the law," Jihad said.



The oil committee, headed by Barham Salih, the deputy prime minister, will send the draft to cabinet next week for full approval. After that it will go to parliament.



Officials hope that the broad base of the negotiating team means it will pass easily.



A national oil company would be set up to develop production and exports and the law is intended to ensure balanced development of the oil industry across Iraq's regions, Jihad said.



It establishes a mechanism for centralising oil revenues and distributing them to the various regions.



"The law sets clear restrictions that all contracts will ensure the best benefit for Iraq," Jihad said.



Regional divisions



According to senior oil industry sources, regions of Iraq will negotiate with multinational oil companies on crude contracts and oilfield developments, but the central government must approve them.



Iraq desperately needs foreign investment to revive its shattered economy, which relies heavily on oil export revenues.



The division of oil is a key factor in communal tensions in Iraq. The southern oilfields around Basra lie in territory controlled by competing factions of the dominant Shia political forces, some of whom are close to Iran.



The division of oil is a key factor
in tensions in Iraq [EPA]
The northern fields lie on the edge of Iraqi Kurdistan around the city of Kirkuk. Many Kurds want to annexe the city as their regional capital. Ethnic Arabs and Turkmen accuse the Kurdish fighters of ethnic cleansing.



A referendum on the city's future is due this year.



Control



The Sunni Arabs, dominant under former president Saddam Hussein, are concentrated in Baghdad and regions immediately to the north and west of the city, where there are few known hydrocarbon reserves.



Sunnis have been particularly insistent that the central government in Baghdad control the oil industry, despite a new, US-sponsored constitution, opposed by most Sunnis, which gives newly created federal regions some powers over oil and gas.



Washington and the government of Nuri al-Maliki, the Shia prime minister, are mounting a major security crackdown in Baghdad over the coming months to avert an all-out civil war between Sunni fighters and Shia militias.



Since the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003, Iraqi production has fallen from 3.5m barrels per day to about two million.
Al Jazeera English - Business

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Originally Posted by archangel

This is not my post............. there is a link at the bottom.

Sorry Arch! Someone will have a visit. I understand that there is now a very dim view of this kind of talk.

Originally Posted by RetMil

Sorry Arch! Someone will have a visit. I understand that there is now a very dim view of this kind of talk.

I apologize to archangel as well! I've really enjoyed his postings.

Sam

Originally Posted by RetMil

Sorry Arch! Someone will have a visit. I understand that there is now a very dim view of this kind of talk.

Originally Posted by stik

I apologize to archangel as well! I've really enjoyed his postings.

Sam

it's ok, I apologize to you guys for not posting it the right way. sometimes I fall asleep at the cpu lol.

question..... where the bleep is everybody????

Jan 18, 2007

Iraqi officials have agreed a final draft of a law that sets rules for sharing Iraq's oil wealth and aims to bring in billions of dollars of foreign investment to rebuild the mainstay of the economy.

But crucially, international oil firms waiting for access to the world's third biggest oil reserves will find little detail in the draft about the form future deals will take. They are likely to hold off major commitments until there is clarity.

The draft calls for a federal committee headed by the prime minister to oversee future contracts and review deals signed under Saddam Hussein or by the Kurdish regional government, oil ministry spokesman Asim Jihad told Reuters.

"The committee finalised the draft of the law last night. It was approved unanimously and it will go before the cabinet early next week," Jihad said.

Passing an oil law to help settle potentially explosive disputes among Iraq's ethnic and sectarian communities over the division of oil reserves has been a key demand of the United States in providing further military support to the government.

Iraq's Oil Committee of senior national and regional leaders has been drawing and redrawing the document for months and missed its own deadline of finalising it by the end of 2006.

"Everybody sees this law as a big achievement and as a national project," Jihad said.

The Oil Committee, headed by Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih, will send the draft to cabinet next week for approval. After that it will go to parliament. Officials hope that the broad base of the negotiating team means it will pass easily.

The final draft was in line with earlier versions described last month after a previous round of talks.

A national oil company will be set up to develop production and exports and the law is intended to ensure development of the oil industry across Iraq's regions, Jihad said.

It establishes a mechanism for centralising oil revenues and distributing them to the regions.

"The law sets clear restrictions that all contracts will ensure the best benefit for Iraq," Jihad said.

Jihad refused to say who will negotiate with the international firms but explained a federal council will have the final word on approving the contracts.

Regional divisions

Senior oil industry sources told Reuters last month that the regions will negotiate with big oil companies on crude contracts and oilfields developments but the centre must approve them.

Norwegian company DNO is already drilling in the Kurdish north. Its shares eased on the news.

Iraq desperately needs foreign investment to revive its shattered economy, which relies heavily on oil export revenues.
The division of oil is a key factor in communal tensions in Iraq. The southern oil fields around Basra lie in territory controlled by competing factions of the dominant Shi'ite Islamist political forces, some of whom are close to Iran.

The northern fields lie on the edge of Iraqi Kurdistan around the city of Kirkuk. Kurds want to annexe the city as their regional capital and ethnic Arabs and Turkmen accuse the Kurdish militants of ethnic cleansing before a referendum on the city's future which, under the constitution, is due this year.

The Sunni Arab minority dominant under ousted president Saddam Hussein is concentrated in Baghdad and regions immediately to the north and west where there are few known hydrocarbon reserves - though some potential future finds.

Sunnis have been particularly insistent that the central government in Baghdad control the oil industry, despite a new, US-sponsored constitution, opposed by most Sunnis, which gives newly created federal regions some powers over oil and gas.

Question marks

Oil Ministry sources told Reuters Iraq is aiming to find the best model for its future contracts with international oil companies by studying existing agreements in Norway, Britain and the United States.

The ministry has sent a 20-strong team to Britain to study contracts there, the sources said. From there it will travel to Norway. Another group will head to the United States soon.

Jihad said the percentage of profit that investing companies could expect to earn had not been set. Iraq would not differentiate between companies based on nationality, he added.

One oil company source said government officials had told him the government was leaning towards a system that used a type of production sharing contract, rather than the royalty-based contracts favoured by industrialised countries.

Industry insiders said however advantageous the terms may be, Iraq would struggle to attract big foreign oil firms.

"If the legal problems are solved by the oil law, that's good news," said a senior Western oil executive.

"But security issues are a much bigger issue. The big money will not go to Baghdad unless it's convinced that employees and contractors won't be abducted, shot or killed."

"Companies from countries such as Russia, India and China - they may have different criteria."

Smaller oil firms are also more willing to take a risk.

"What the industry needs is a workable law. At the moment we have uncertainty... we'd prefer to negotiate with the central government," said David Horgan, chief executive of Petrel Resources, which is developing fields in southern Iraq.

Originally Posted by CharmedPiper

Jan 18, 2007

Iraqi officials have agreed a final draft of a law that sets rules for sharing Iraq's oil wealth and aims to bring in billions of dollars of foreign investment to rebuild the mainstay of the economy.

But crucially, international oil firms waiting for access to the world's third biggest oil reserves will find little detail in the draft about the form future deals will take. They are likely to hold off major commitments until there is clarity.

The draft calls for a federal committee headed by the prime minister to oversee future contracts and review deals signed under Saddam Hussein or by the Kurdish regional government, oil ministry spokesman Asim Jihad told Reuters.

"The committee finalised the draft of the law last night. It was approved unanimously and it will go before the cabinet early next week," Jihad said.

Passing an oil law to help settle potentially explosive disputes among Iraq's ethnic and sectarian communities over the division of oil reserves has been a key demand of the United States in providing further military support to the government.

Iraq's Oil Committee of senior national and regional leaders has been drawing and redrawing the document for months and missed its own deadline of finalising it by the end of 2006.

"Everybody sees this law as a big achievement and as a national project," Jihad said.

The Oil Committee, headed by Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih, will send the draft to cabinet next week for approval. After that it will go to parliament. Officials hope that the broad base of the negotiating team means it will pass easily.

The final draft was in line with earlier versions described last month after a previous round of talks.

A national oil company will be set up to develop production and exports and the law is intended to ensure development of the oil industry across Iraq's regions, Jihad said.

It establishes a mechanism for centralising oil revenues and distributing them to the regions.

"The law sets clear restrictions that all contracts will ensure the best benefit for Iraq," Jihad said.

Jihad refused to say who will negotiate with the international firms but explained a federal council will have the final word on approving the contracts.

Regional divisions

Senior oil industry sources told Reuters last month that the regions will negotiate with big oil companies on crude contracts and oilfields developments but the centre must approve them.

Norwegian company DNO is already drilling in the Kurdish north. Its shares eased on the news.

Iraq desperately needs foreign investment to revive its shattered economy, which relies heavily on oil export revenues.
The division of oil is a key factor in communal tensions in Iraq. The southern oil fields around Basra lie in territory controlled by competing factions of the dominant Shi'ite Islamist political forces, some of whom are close to Iran.

The northern fields lie on the edge of Iraqi Kurdistan around the city of Kirkuk. Kurds want to annexe the city as their regional capital and ethnic Arabs and Turkmen accuse the Kurdish militants of ethnic cleansing before a referendum on the city's future which, under the constitution, is due this year.

The Sunni Arab minority dominant under ousted president Saddam Hussein is concentrated in Baghdad and regions immediately to the north and west where there are few known hydrocarbon reserves - though some potential future finds.

Sunnis have been particularly insistent that the central government in Baghdad control the oil industry, despite a new, US-sponsored constitution, opposed by most Sunnis, which gives newly created federal regions some powers over oil and gas.

Question marks

Oil Ministry sources told Reuters Iraq is aiming to find the best model for its future contracts with international oil companies by studying existing agreements in Norway, Britain and the United States.

The ministry has sent a 20-strong team to Britain to study contracts there, the sources said. From there it will travel to Norway. Another group will head to the United States soon.

Jihad said the percentage of profit that investing companies could expect to earn had not been set. Iraq would not differentiate between companies based on nationality, he added.

One oil company source said government officials had told him the government was leaning towards a system that used a type of production sharing contract, rather than the royalty-based contracts favoured by industrialised countries.

Industry insiders said however advantageous the terms may be, Iraq would struggle to attract big foreign oil firms.

"If the legal problems are solved by the oil law, that's good news," said a senior Western oil executive.

"But security issues are a much bigger issue. The big money will not go to Baghdad unless it's convinced that employees and contractors won't be abducted, shot or killed."

"Companies from countries such as Russia, India and China - they may have different criteria."

Smaller oil firms are also more willing to take a risk.

"What the industry needs is a workable law. At the moment we have uncertainty... we'd prefer to negotiate with the central government," said David Horgan, chief executive of Petrel Resources, which is developing fields in southern Iraq.

I love what is written in the bold letters,it's finalized thank god!!!!
Hopefully we will all see our revale once this is enacted!Seems to me the reval would have to take place before this could happen! What do you guy's think? Feedback please!
Sarah!

The salary increases are calculated from this month
The dollar at 1260 dinars this year and drop to one thousand dinars soon

The Egyptian Minister of Finance that the 2007 budget had been lifted support for oil derivatives, and confirmed that his ministry had decided to work under a new salary from this month has allocated the funds required, but the House did not approve a plan of implementation so far, pointing out that the value of the Iraqi dinar against the dollar, will be at 1260 dinars for this year with a fiscal policy for the Iraqi dinar to normal.

He said Baqer Zubaidi, the Minister of Finance in a special Basubah yesterday : that the seven billion dollars is the value of crude oil, which is pumped from Iraqi oil fields to refineries Iraqi oil belongs to the Iraqi Oil Ministry said that this was in support of the Iraqi government for petroleum products also been allocated three billion dollars from the financial budget to cover the expenses of construction of new lines and maintenance of existing refineries, with a further $ 300-million dollars to buy kerosene.
He explained that Zubaidi Akiam amounts of the sale of petroleum products would remain with the Ministry of oil used to sustain and develop other oil projects, pointing out that the furor raised to support the lifting of oil derivatives has only included the lifting of subsidy on imported gasoline quality, which is used in modern cars.
And that the Ministry of Oil and the purchase of materials used in improving the derivatives of its own budget.
As for the salaries of the State Minister of Finance said : that his ministry had issued directives to the state regardless staff salaries according to a new salary but that the parliament has delayed the ratification of the implementation of the plan due to the lack of quorum as the delay in the preparation of the budget and its own budget approved by the Supreme Judiciary Council is the latest budget process by the government to the House of Representatives.
He pointed out that new applications for the government of Kurdistan, including deducting the value of its imports directly from the various added reason to delay submission of the budget.
He explained that the Ministry of Finance has figures for the budget of the Ministry of Defense and Ministry as decided by the sovereign to between the parties as called for by the Ministry of non-sovereign.
He emphasized - Zubaidi that the Ministry of Finance and in consultation with the Central Bank of seeks to identify the rate of exchange of the dollar the value of in 1260 dinars during the this year with laid down a plan to return the Iraqi dinar to its former era during the coming three years expressing his hope to stabilize the custody of during the coming three years expressing his hope to stabilize rate of exchange of 1000 dinars during the coming period the pointing out that the inflation not a situation fixed but is temporary and that one of the causes for crisis cruise goods and its access to the depths of the Iraqi ports because of the terrorist operations also that the rise of the prices of oil derivatives during crises another cause of inflation. Regarding the current year budget-Zubaidi described as ambitious for the first time achieved eight billion dollars for security, despite the allocation of large amounts of investment that will contribute to solve the crisis of unemployment and increase economic growth by 10-8%, so as to ensure the completion of service projects in all governorates.
He said the remaining funds from the account of the final years amounted to eight billion dollars that the government would provide final budget to the House of Representatives during the first quarter of this year.
He called Al-Zubaidi morning daily opening channels of communication with the Ministry of Finance for the purpose of participating in the transfer of the facts and push the other parties to determine the responsibility of financial policy and to support democracy by the government of national unity.
(Details of the meeting in a later issue)

Originally Posted by crave681

question..... where the bleep is everybody????

honestly, I think we've just all had it. It's watch and wait time. We've all been on tenterhooks for months and months, and then there's the weirdness with people attacking the forum. I suspect general burnout. If something big comes along, look out! We'll all be back with bells on.