Iraq poised to sign key contract for Akkas gas field development
Shafaq News / The Iraqi Parliamentary Oil and Gas Resources Committee revealed on Saturday that a contract for the development of the Akkas gas field in western Iraq is set to be signed soon. The committee considered the federal oil ministry's actions as a step in the right direction.
Committee Chairman, MP Haibat Al-Halbousi, told Shafaq News Agency that the oil ministry has signed four crucial contracts with the French company Total. He emphasized that such contracts are essential for Iraq to achieve self-sufficiency and halt gas imports.
Al-Halbousi noted that more contracts would be signed in the near future in western Iraq, including the Akkas field, as well as contracts in the sixth round. He emphasized that the oil ministry is moving in the right direction to achieve self-sufficiency, stop imports, and rely on domestically produced gas to operate power stations and meet essential needs.
Earlier, the Director of Oil Contracts and Licensing at the Ministry of Oil, Ali Ma'araj, stated that the ministry is negotiating with the American company Halliburton for the development and investment of the Akkas gas field in al-Anbar governorate. He mentioned that the field's production would range from 400 to 500 million cubic feet per day.
He also stated that the ministry is in talks with foreign companies interested in investing in the Akkas gas field to secure an agreement similar to what happened with the Mansuriya gas field.
In June 2011, the Ministry of Oil signed the initial contract with the Korean company KOGAS to develop the Akkas gas field after the Kazakhstani Kaz Company withdrew from the coalition. However, KOGAS also withdrew when ISIS entered the governorate.
A coalition consisting of KOGAS and Kaz companies won the development contract for the Akkas gas field after submitting a bid that included a production cost of $5.50 per barrel equivalent and a production capacity of 400 million cubic feet, with an investment of at least $25 billion over 13 years to reach the field's production peak.
It is noteworthy that the Akkas gas field, discovered in 1992, is located in northwestern al-Anbar, 25 kilometers southwest of Al-Qa'im district on the Euphrates River, near the Syrian border. The field is approximately 50 kilometers long, 18 kilometers wide, and has six drilled wells. It holds a confirmed gas reserve of 5.6 trillion standard cubic meters.
