Iraqi News Highlights Late Friday Evening 7-7-23
Tlm724 Administrator Bondlady’s Corner
Oil Prices Continue To Stabilize Amid Fears Of Lower Supply
Economy | – 07/07/2023 Baghdad – Mawazine News Oil prices were little changed today, Friday, while heading for weekly gains, as fears of raising US interest rates, which could reduce energy demand, were met with indications of a contraction in supply, after a larger-than-expected decline in US crude stocks.
Brent crude futures fell one cent to $76.51 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude rose two years to $71.82 a barrel.
The two benchmarks are expected to rise about 2% for the second week in a row, according to Reuters.
This comes at a time when Saudi Arabia and Russia announced a new round of production cuts for the month of August, and the total cuts now exceed 5 million barrels per day, equivalent to five of the world’s oil production. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=230799
Iraqi Oil Minister: Our Gas Reserves Are 133 Trillion Cubic Feet, And We Aspire To Achieve Self-Sufficiency
Posted On2023-07-07 By Sotaliraq On Thursday, the Iraqi Oil Minister, Hayan Abdul-Ghani, confirmed that the ministry is working to achieve self-sufficiency in gas during the next five years, referring to offering two licensing rounds to explore oil and gas fields, in this regard.
Abdul-Ghani said, in a statement to the Emirates News Agency, WAM, on the sidelines of the activities of the eighth international OPEC conference in Vienna, that the first licensing round included more than 10 oil and gas fields in western Iraq, and the second includes 13 fields and exploratory sites on the western borders, which will enable Iraq. From the production of more than one billion and 500 million cubic feet of gas.
He added that Iraq possesses large reserves of 144.5 billion cubic meters of oil and more than 133 trillion standard cubic feet of gas.
He referred to a contract with the “BP” company to develop the Rumaila field, which is one of the large fields in Iraq, and currently produces one million and 380 thousand barrels of oil per day, in addition to the accompanying gas in large quantities.
Abdul-Ghani continued, “We have contracts with (Eni) to develop the Zubair oil field, which currently produces 450,000 barrels of oil per day, as well as contracts in West (Qurna 1) with (Exxon Mobil) to produce 380,000 barrels of oil per day, in addition to contracts with (Lukoil) company in the West Qurna region to develop a field with a production of up to 410 thousand barrels per day, in addition to other contracts in different regions.
He stressed that the oil production capacity in Iraq currently amounts to 5.4 million barrels per day, while the current total production under the “OPEC” share reaches 4.43 million barrels per day, with the country looking forward within promising plans to raise production capacity to 6 million barrels per day, through licensing contracts. concluded with companies during the next stage.
Regarding the contribution of oil and gas to the GDP of the State of Iraq, the minister explained that the contribution of oil constitutes the largest part in the gross domestic product of his country, as 90% of the state’s imports depend on oil wealth.
With regard to efforts to reduce carbon emissions, Abdul-Ghani indicated that Iraq has taken great steps in investing in natural gas as a source of clean energy, as investment is concentrated in southern Iraq, through the “Basra Gas” company, which is a joint alliance that includes the “Southern Gas” and “Shell” companies. and “Mitsubishi”, and since its inception it has been able to implement promising projects, on top of which is the Basra “NGL” project, which includes an investment of 400 million cubic feet of gas.
He added, “The first phase of the project was opened last May with a capacity of 200 million cubic feet of gas, while the second phase of the project is expected to be completed by the end of the current year 2023, which will contribute to reaching 400 million cubic feet of natural gas.”
“He pointed out that there are investments in 5 oil fields, namely Majnoon, West Qurna 2, Luhais, Al-Toba, and Al-Sabbah, which will provide 600 million cubic feet of gas, which will enhance the contribution to meeting the needs of electric energy. LINK
Gas Exporting Countries Forum: Iraq Has An Important Role In The Energy Sector
Energy Economy News _ Baghdad Today, Friday, Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Affairs and Minister of Oil Hayan Abdul-Ghani gave a briefing on the development of the gas sector in Iraq through government support for the optimal investment of gas wealth, reducing emissions and converting them into energy that contributes to the promotion of related industries.
This came during a meeting between the Iraqi Oil Minister and the Secretary-General of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum, Muhammad Hamel, in the Austrian capital, Vienna, according to a statement received by Al-Iqtisad News.
According to the statement, during the meeting, developments in the growth of the gas sector in the world were discussed, where the importance of supporting gas and renewable energy investment projects was emphasized, and the role played by the oil and gas sector in addressing environmental impacts.
The Iraqi Minister of Oil referred to the national strategy that aims to invest in free and associated gas in the country, as well as to develop and invest in exploration sites with hydrocarbon-gas compositions through cooperation with specialized international companies, and the exploitation of smart technologies to increase energy efficiency.
For his part, the Secretary General of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum stressed the importance of the role played by Iraq in the oil and energy sector, praising its efforts in developing promising gas projects in Iraq. Views 23 07/07/2023 – https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=35047
The Iraqi Central Bank Raises The Share Of Travelers And Banking Companies From The Dollar
Posted On 2023-07-07 By Sotaliraq On Thursday, the Central Bank of Iraq decided to increase the monthly share of the dollar for citizens wishing to travel from the dollar, as well as the weekly share for exchange companies.
And the bank instructed, in a document addressed to licensed government and private banks, that the share of the citizen traveling through the air and land ports be at three thousand dollars per month, starting from next Sunday.
The bank stipulated that the electronic platform for cash sales (FITR) be approved exclusively to record the data of daily cash sales for travelers.
The share of the citizen wishing to travel was 10 thousand dollars, and it was reduced to two thousand dollars, to be increased now by one thousand dollars.
In another document addressed to the “B” exchange companies, the bank said, “It was decided to increase the ceiling of the weekly cash amount of dollars allocated to your companies to become $750,000 per week, as of next Sunday.”
And that the aim of this is “based on the objectives of this bank to achieve stability in the general level of prices and exchange rates and to meet the high demand for foreign currency in the local markets.”
The bank confirmed that the electronic platform for cash sale (FITR) will be used exclusively to record the data of daily cash sales received through the window.
It is likely that this new decision contributed to the decline in the price of the US dollar against the Iraqi dinar today on the Baghdad Stock Exchange, where it reached 14,722 dinars per 100 dollars, after it touched earlier 150 thousand dinars per 100 dollars. LINK
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