Iraq approves new oil and gas licensing round

Shafaq News/ Iraq's cabinet on Thursday approved contracts for new hydrocarbons licensing rounds, the government announced in a statement.

"The cabinet approved contracts for the fifth supplementary and sixth licensing rounds, totaling 14 projects, for final signing," the statement said.

The government will "proceed with the activation of the contracts under consideration, in accordance with the provisions of Article 39/1 of the aforementioned rounds' contracts," the statement added.

The move is aimed at boosting Iraq's oil and gas production, which is a major driver of the country's economy.

Iraq aims to lure billions of dollars of investments to develop its oil and gas sector as it looks to ramp up local petrochemicals production and end imports of gas from neighboring Iran that is currently key to producing power.

Iraq, OPEC's second-largest oil producer after Saudi Arabia, at one time, had targeted becoming a rival to the Gulf Arab kingdom with an output of over a tenth of global demand.

However, its oil sector development has been hampered by contract terms viewed as unfavorable by many major oil companies, as well as recurring conflict and political paralysis.

Growing investor focus in recent years on environmental, social, and governance criteria has also had an effect.

Western oil giants such as Exxon Mobil Corp and Royal Dutch Shell Plc have departed from a number of projects in Iraq while Chinese companies have steadily expanded their footprint.