Iraq invites Kuwaiti firms to invest in oil sector

Iraqi Oil Minister Jabbar Al-Luaibi, meeting with Kuwait’s Ambassador in Baghdad Salem Al-Zamanan on Monday, invited Kuwaiti companies to invest in the oil sector in Iraq. Luaibi expressed keenness to see Kuwaiti companies work and invest in oil and energy sector in Iraq, Zamanan said in a statement following the meeting. He said they discussed cooperation in oil and energy sector, as well as exploring new horizons towards better economic relations.

Iraqi oil ministry is preparing to offer 12 oil fields for investors. The fields are in Basra, Maysan and Waset. The Iraqi government has granted licenses for scores of foreign oil companies, boosting daily oil production to over four million barrels.

Meanwhile, Iraq’s Basra Investment Commission yesterday urged Kuwaiti businessmen, investors and firms to attend a forthcoming conference to explore investment opportunities in the southern Iraqi province.

The commission is now coordinating with the Kuwaiti side for a wide scale investment conference to be held in Kuwait, most likely late in November, which will see up to 200 opportunities offered to investors, director Ali Jasib said. The idea of the conference emerged during a visit by Basrah governor Majid Al-Nasrawi to Kuwait earlier in 2016, he said. The potential investment opportunities cover agriculture, industry, housing, education, and infrastructure. Jasib noted that the governorate has been receiving investment requests from Kuwaiti firms, the last of which from the Bukhamseen Holding Group, in partnership with the Iraqi Al Shalal Al Azraq Group, to build a housing complex near the Basrah International Airport. — KUNA