International oil companies pull out of Kurdistan
Giant oil companies are withdrawing from oil and gas exploration in Iraqi Kurdistan due to the drop in oil prices and contractual problems with the regional government.
ERBIL, Iraq — Exxon Mobil has pulled out of three of the six exploration blocks it operated in the Kurdistan Region. The American oil giant withdrew from Betwata, Arbat and Qara Hanjeer in Sulaimaniyah province, raising many questions about the sudden step.
Hemen Hawrami, the head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party's foreign relations office, announced during a Dec. 26 press conference that Exxon’s withdrawal came as the result of decreasing production and had no political motivation.
