BAGHDAD: Low oil prices have hurt production everywhere, including Iraq, where oil revenue is needed to help rebuild after years of turmoil.
Iraq, still reeling from the US invasion and now fighting ISIS, has been trying to increase its oil output. But two energy giants – Britain’s BP and Russia’s state-owned Lukoil – say the persistent low price of oil has limited the country’s wealth, making it difficult to attract international oil companies to help it produce its most valuable commodity.
Michael Townshend, BP’s regional president for the Middle East, says his company’s plan to achieve its production goals relies entirely on the Baghdad government’s approval of its investment plans. Likewise, Gati Al-Jebouri, the senior vice president of Lukoil Overseas, expects a “significant reduction” in Iraq’s production growth in 2016 and 2017 because of the low price of oil.
Further hindering the Iraqi government is its battle with the Islamic militants of ISIS, also called ISIL, who have seized parts of the country, with special attention often given to lucrative oil fields.
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