‘No’ to West Qurna-1: Lukoil
Kyrgyzstan to sell gas company to Gazprom
MOSCOW, Dec 24, (RTRS): Russia’s second-largest crude producer LUKOIL said on Monday it had decided not to join the development of Iraq’s West Qurna-1 oilfield, citing high risks, paving the way for Chinese companies to enter the project.
LUKOIL oversees the largest share of oil reserves in Iraq among foreign companies and is already involved in the West Qurna-2 project, while company’s from energy-China are vying for Iraqi oil.
“We have analysed all the risks and decided that, as we have been implementing such a global project as West Qurna-2 without a partner, we would have taken great risks by entering another big project such as West Qurna-1,” Andrei Kuzyayev, head of LUKOIL Overseas, told Russian state TV channel Rossiya-24.
West Qurna-1 became available for LUKOIL and other majors last month when ExxonMobil has informed the Iraqi government it wants to pull out of the $50 billion project in southern Iraq.
Iraqi and Chinese sources said CNPC unit Petrochina is negotiating for Exxon’s 60 percent in West Qurna1 project and that there are rival bidders. Royal Dutch Shell is a minority Russian oil is justified, although exporting companies will decide themselves on eastern or western routes on the basis of profitability.
“Of course, there is a risk of oil flows cuts to Europe. And ESPO blend sells with a premium to Dubai, it speaks in partner.
For China, a major buyer of Iraqi crude, access to reserves is a strategic imperative, and Beijing is prepared to accept tougher terms and lower profits than Western oil majors and even Russian firms which have to answer to shareholders.
Baghdad expects Exxon to complete the sale of its shares in West Qurna-1 by the end of December and the US company has told Iraq it is already in talks with other oil majors.
The U.S. firm has riled the Iraqi central government by signing deals with the autonomous Kurdistan regional government.
Also: Kyrgyzstan BISHKEK: will sell state gas company to Russia’s Gazprom early next year, to ease a crippling energy crisis, its president said on Monday.
Gas supplies to Kyrgyzstan’s north via its leading supplier Kazakhstan have sputtered due to mounting unpaid bills. Tens of thousands of residents of the capital Bishkek have suffered night temperatures at minus 20 Celsius (minus 4 Fahrenheit).
Russia, which like the
United favour of the Eastern route,” Alexander Kornilov, a senior analyst with Alfa bank, said, citing the Asian market benchmark grade.
A first-quarter loading schedule has showed that Russia would cut Europebound oil supplies with the biggest fall, States runs a military air base in Kyrgyzstan, is keen to strengthen its economic foothold in the mountainous country neighbouring China.
Simmering popular discontent and opposition criticism of the fledgling cabinet of Prime Minister Zhantoro Satybaldiyev pose a threat to the fragile peace in the impoverished nation of 5.5 million which has seen two presidents deposed in violent revolts since 2005.
“If in the first quarter of next year Gazprom becomes the owner of Kyrgyzgas, we will have no stoppages of gas supplies,” President Almazbek Atambayev told his annual news conference, referring to the Kyrgyz state-run gas company.
“As a citizen and president, I do not cling to Kyrgyzgas. I only need affordable, uninterrupted and inexpensive gas supplies to our towns.”
Kyrgyzstan also wants the Russian gas giant to invest no less than $500 million in modernising its gas transportation network and prospect for natural gas, Atambayev said.
“Gazprom accepted all these conditions and said: ‘ We want to buy the entire 100-percent stake (in Kyrgyzgas)’,” he said. of 20 percent, expected in its Baltic port of Ust-Luga.
Russia launched the first stage of the ESPO link to Skovorodino at the Chinese border in 2009, and in January 2011 started pipeline deliveries at 300,000 barrels per day to China.