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.
Hawrami said, “Kurdistan is rich in oil and natural gas, and all oil companies wish to work there. Exxon Mobil is now seeking to exploit natural gas.”
In the Dec. 6 Iraq Oil Report, Kurdistan’s Minister of Natural Resources Ashti Hawrami said that Exxon is withdrawing because it could not fulfill its contract with the region's government. “Some companies didn't meet contractual deadlines and according to the contract had to relinquish their areas,” Hawrami was quoted as saying.
