Chen Aizhu and Ahmed Rasheed
Singapore/Bagdad (Reuters) -China independent oil companies are preparing for activities in Iraq, investing billions of dollars to OPEC second producer, even when some world major companies have retreated from the market dominated by the Big State Enterprise.
Based on more profitable contracts, smaller Chinese manufacturers seek to double their production to Iraq to 500,000 barrels a day to about 2030, according to four corporate executives, not previously reported.
In Baghdad, who also seeks to seduce world giants, the growing presence of China’s private players is marked by a shift, as Iraq is undergoing more pressure to accelerate projects, several Iraqi energy officials say. In recent years, the Iraqi Oil Ministry has retreated from the rising control of Chinese oil fields.
For smaller Chinese firms, owned by Chinese state heavy veterans, Iraq is the ability to use lower costs and faster development of projects that may be too small for large Western or China’s large companies.
Having low prospects in the Chinese state oil and gas industry, overseas pushes the Chinese firms model in other heavy industries to find new markets of productive capacity and competence.
Little-known players, including Geo-Jade Petroleum Corp, United Energy Group, Zhongman Petroleum and Natural Gas Group and Anton Oilfield Services Group, made last year Splash when they won half of Iraqi research licensing.
Smaller Chinese producers say the Iraqi investment climate has improved as the country becomes more politically stable and Baghdad wants to attract Chinese and Western companies.
Iraq wants to increase its production by more than half to more than 6 million BPD by 2029. Chinese CNPC alone accounts for more than half of the current Iraqi products in mass fields, including Haifaya, Rumaila and West Qurna 1.
Sharing profits, risk tolerance
The transition of Iraqi a year ago to contracts based on profit from a fixed tax agreement – an attempt to speed up projects after Exxonmobil and Shell crushed – helped to seduce Chinese independent persons.
These smaller firms are unpleasant than large Chinese companies and more risk -resistant than many companies to consider investing in the Gulf economy.
Chinese companies offer competitive funding, reduce costs with cheaper Chinese work and equipment and want to agree with lower margins to win long -term contracts, said Ali Abdulameer of the State Basra Oil Co, which completes contracts with foreign firms.
“They are known for its rapid project implementation, strict compliance terms, and high tolerance for operations where there are security challenges,” he said. “Business with Chinese is much easier and less complicated with Western companies.”
Chinese leaders said smaller Chinese firms could create an oil field in Iraq in two or three years, less than five to 10 years, Chinese leaders said.
“China’s independent individuals have much lower management costs compared to Western firms, and are also more competitive than Chinese state players,” said Dao-Jade Petroleum CEO with five blocks in Iraq.
Independent individuals have reduced industry costs to increase the development well in a large Iraqi oil field by about half from half a decade ago to $ 4 to $ 5 million, DA said.
Compromises
May May The Geo-Jade consortium agreed to invest in the South Basra project, which includes an increase in Tuba field in the southern Iraq to 100,000 PPD and built a 200,000 BPD processing plant. Geo-Jade, having paid $ 848 million. USD, plans to revive the output essentially on the Mothballed field to 40,000 BPD until about 2027. In the middle of the 19th century, Dai said Reuters.
The project also calls for an oil chemistry complex and two power plants demanding several billion dollars investment, said reserve engineer DA, who previously worked abroad with CNPC and SINOPEC.
Zhenhua Oil, a small state -owned company that collaborated with the CNPC of a $ 3 billion -worth of dollars to create Ahdab Oilfield in 2008, which is the first large foreign foreign investment project after 2003. Saddam Hussein was underestimated.
Zhongman Petroleum in June Announced a plan to spend $ 481 million. USD for average euphrates and northern blocks of Eastern Baghdad won in 2024.
Cheaper projects of Chinese firms can occur at the expense of Iraq’s goal to introduce more sophisticated technologies.
Former Basra Oil Operation Manager, Muwafaq Abbas, expressed concern about Chinese firms’ transparency and technical standards, which he said had a criticism of a large number of Chinese employees and directed Iraqis to the roles below.
Of course, some Western firms return to Iraq: Totalenergies in 2023. Posted a $ 27 billion project, and BP is expected to spend up to $ 25 billion to rebuild the four Kirkuk fields in the semi -autonomous Kurdish region, Reuters said.
(Chen Aizhu Notifications in Singapore, Ahmed Rasheed in Baghdad and Aref Mohammed Basra; Edited by Tony Munroe and William Mallard)
