Oil Giants back to Iraq

[Charlie P]

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/06/19/africa/19iraq.php

Four Western oil companies are in the final stages of negotiations this month on contracts that will return them to Iraq, 36 years after losing their oil concession to nationalization as Saddam Hussein rose topower.
Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP "” the original partners in the Iraq Petroleum Company "” along with Chevron and a number of smaller oil companies, are in talks with Iraq's Oil Ministry for no-bid contracts to service Iraq's largest fields, according to ministry officials, oil company officials and an Americandiplomat.
The deals, expected to be announced on June 30, will lay the foundation for the first commercial work for the major companies in Iraq since the American invasion, and open a new and potentially lucrative country for theiroperations.
The no-bid contracts are unusual for the industry, and the offers prevailed over others by more than 40 companies, including companies in Russia, China and India. The contracts, which would run for one to two years and are relatively small by industry standards, would nonetheless give the companies an advantage in bidding on future contracts in a country that many experts consider to be the best hope for a large-scale increase in oilproduction.
There was suspicion among many in the Arab world and among parts of the American public that the United States had gone to war in Iraq precisely to secure the oil wealth these contracts seek to extract. The Bush administration has said that the war was necessary to combat terrorism. It is not clear what role the United States played in awarding the contracts; there are still American advisers to Iraq's OilMinistry.

[Charlie P]

Imagine that? Who would have thought, no bid contracts none the less. HMmmmmmmmmmmmm??

[shepdogwv]

pretty smart if you ask me.....lets give it to private corporations instead of state owned companies of countries who may someday be our adversaries. Seems like a good political and tactical move on our part, it provides the largest amount of security to the Iraqi oil reserves, while not giving them to a certain country. At the very least these private companies are going to sell to the highest bidder......if you think the state owned Russian/Chinese companies are going to keep selling to us if push comes to shove, no matter what we offer, then you're crazy.

[Charlie P]

We are advisors it's their country right? Are you saying this was our decision?

From the article.

It said the companies had been chosen because they had been advising the ministry without charge for two years before being awarded the contracts, and because these companies had the neededtechnology.

[oldelkhunter]

Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP

Total and BP are they not Europeon Companies?

[Lanse couche couche]

Makes sense. What is the alternative, letting the Russians come in and do it.Considering the billions and billions we have spent on the war, we would have to get a hell of a lot of oil for a hell of a long time to even break even. So, i dont know if it supports the going to war for oil theory.

[Charlie P]

The article states Western oil companies not just US.

[oldelkhunter]

Makes sense. What is the alternative, letting the Russians come in and do it.Considering the billions and billions we have spent on the war, we would have to get a hell of a lot of oil for a hell of a long time to even break even. So, i dont know if it supports the going to war for oil theory. [align=right]
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I read somewhere how many barrels they could pump in Iraq but it didn't seem that significant..no way they are paying us back or was the dollar return worth it in that war.

[Fieldmouse]

FYI, Exxon is only #10 on the list of Oil companies. Hardly a giant.

[Charlie P]

Exxom isn't a giant? Come on. How many do they employ what's their bottom line?