ExxonMobil Reportedly Bids Iraq Farewell, PetroChina Takes the Lead in Mega Oilfield

Exxon Mobil Corp XOM has reportedly exited the West Qurna 1 oilfield in southern Iraq and transferred its operations to PetroChina Co., Ltd.PCCYF as lead contractor. 

Yesterday, Senior Iraqi oil officials met with executives of XOM, PetroChina and Basra Oil Co at the West Qurna 1 field near Basra to close the deal, reported Reuters.

West Qurna 1 presently produces oil of around 550,000 barrels per day (bpd) and is one of the world's largest oilfields, having an estimated recoverable reserves of over 20 billion barrels.

"We are meeting today to bid farewell to ExxonMobil, and at the same time we congratulate PetroChina for becoming the lead contractor," Basim Mohammed, deputy oil minister for upstream affairs, told Reuters.

With the deal closure, ExxonMobil now doesn't have a presence in Iraq's energy sector.

Also, PetroChina now holds the largest stake in the West Qurna 1 field.

Last year, Iraq inked a divestiture agreement to acquire 22.7% of XOM's interest in West Qurna 1 by Iraq's state-run Basra Oil Co.(BOC), while Indonesia's state-owned Pertamina buying the remaining 10% of Exxon's stake, increasing its ownership to 20%.

Also Read: Oil Investing In 2024: 4 ETFs To Consider For Backing Or Hedging Prices

Price Action: XOM shares are trading higher by 0.85% at $100.83 premarket on the last check Tuesday.

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