Although the smoke of war still hangs over Iraq, global oil companies are eager to take risks and seize the much-needed Iraqi oil market. From December 5th to 7th, 2008, the first Iraq International Energy Expo was held at the heavily guarded Baghdad International Airport Convention Center, attracting numerous energy companies to actively participate. Foreign companies actively participate in exhibitions

The three-day oil industry event attracted over 80 oil companies and oil related companies from around the world. Majid Michel, Vice President of the Iraq American Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the organizer of the exhibition, told reporters that this energy expo is not only the first in the history of Iraq after the war. The exhibitors come from countries in North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia, and have also attracted over 300 industry experts.

Among them, ConocoPhillips, Cook Oil of Russia, Gazprom Neft and other oil giants set up booths at the exhibition. Sichuan Honghua Petroleum Equipment Co., Ltd. of China also participated in this exhibition. It can be seen that under the organization and strong promotion of the Iran US Federation of Commerce and Industry, all parties have expressed great interest in sharing Iraq iss tempting oil and gas resources. Senior officials from the Iraqi Ministry of Petroleum have mobilized and led 14 domestic oil companies to actively establish cooperative relationships with foreign companies and discuss specific cooperation projects.

During the exhibition, reporters found that several Western oil giants - ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, Total, and Chevron - were absent from the exhibition. In response, Michelle said, "They told us that due to the current unclear security situation, they will definitely participate in the next energy expo

Iraq looks forward to foreign investment

The purpose of this event is to encourage foreign companies and investors to invest in oil field projects in Iraq, "Michel said. The expo provides an opportunity for international oil companies to discuss cooperation with officials and experts from the Iraqi Ministry of Oil" face-to-face ".

Iraqi Oil Minister Hussein Shahristani said in his speech, "2008 is an excellent opportunity to invest in the upstream and downstream industries of Iraq iss oil and gas infrastructure." He stated that the Iraqi government is committed to formulating a series of relevant regulations to encourage investment in the oil sector. Global companies will have the opportunity to share Iraq iss world iss second largest oil reserves and invest and collaborate in areas such as refining, pipeline networks, exports, and distribution.

Shahristani stated that the geopolitical instability in Iraq over the past 30 years has severely constrained oil and gas development. War, international embargoes, insufficient investment, declining management levels, loss of experts, and aging infrastructure have severely constrained the development of the oil industry. Currently, only 15 out of the 38 oil and gas fields discovered in Iraq have been developed, so the potential is quite enormous

It is reported that at the end of June this year, Iraq provided a total of 6 oil fields in the first round of license sale bidding in the country, including the Rumaila oil field, Kirkuk oil field, Bayhassan oil field, Zubair oil field, Misan oil field, and West Gurna oil field, as well as 2 gas fields, including the Akas gas field and Mansuriye gas field. Shahristani stated that he will sign the first batch of bidding related service contracts with foreign companies in mid-2009.

Rich oil and gas resources

Iraq has proven oil reserves of 115 billion barrels, accounting for approximately 10% of the global total reserves; The proven natural gas reserves are 112 trillion cubic feet (1 cubic meter is approximately 35 cubic feet), ranking 10th among the world iss largest natural gas countries. Recent exploration results show that Iraq iss crude oil reserves are approximately 214 billion barrels, and it is expected that 40 billion barrels will be converted into proven reserves in the next five years.

According to Shahristani, Iraq currently has "9 super large oil fields" with reserves of over 5 billion barrels; 22 large oil fields, with reserves exceeding 1 billion barrels. These super large and large-scale oil fields account for approximately 75% of Iraq iss proven crude oil reserves, with the remaining 25% distributed in the central and northern regions of Iraq. The latest exploration results show that the undiscovered oil and gas reserves in the desert areas of southwestern Iraq have greatly exceeded expectations.

He stated that the next two years will be a critical period for the development of Iraq iss major oil projects. According to the plan for the next 10 years, by 2013, the daily crude oil production will increase from the current 2.4 million barrels to 4.5 million barrels; By 2018, daily crude oil production will increase to 6 million barrels. At the same time, the daily production of natural gas will also increase from the current 1.7 billion cubic feet to 5.1 billion cubic feet.