SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi said on Monday his country wants another American company to replace Exxon Mobil Corp when it leaves Iraq.
Exxon Mobil has been seeking to sell its 32.7% stake in one of Iraq’s biggest oilfield, West Qurna 1, according to the oil ministry.
The company, which in 2019 had looked to move ahead with a $53 billion project to boost Iraq’s oil output, was seeking to sell the share for $350 million, said Basra Oil Company director Khalid Hamza.
“Exxon Mobil is considering exiting Iraqi for reasons that are to do with its internal management practices, decisions, and not because of the particular situation in Iraq,” Kadhimi told a small group of reporters in Washington after talks with U.S. President Joe Biden.
“When Exxon Mobil departs, we will not accept its replacement to be other than another American company,” he added.
In May, Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar said Iraq was considering purchasing Exxon’s West Qurna stake through state-owned Basra Oil Co.
Exxon told Reuters in a statement that it had entered into an agreement with Petrochina and China’s offshore oil and gas major CNOOC Ltd to sell its West Qurna interest in January 2021.
It said Indonesia’s Pertamina has since exercised its right to purchase the interest that would have been sold to CNOOC.
The statement also said Exxon has filed for arbitration against Basra Oil over Exxon’s sale of the West Qurna stake, according to Reuters.
“The sale aligns with ExxonMobil’s strategy to focus on advantaged assets with the lowest cost of supply, including developments in Guyana, Brazil and the U.S. Permian Basin,” the statement said.
Securing foreign investment is critical for Iraq, the second-largest producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Oil revenue represents at least 95% of Iraq’s income.
