MIDDLE EAST

necessary to move forward with a major energy project in OPEC’s second-largest oil producer after Saudi Arabia.

TotalEnergies and the Iraqi government have defined the necessary conditions and mutual insurances to move forward with the Gas Growth Integrated Project (GGIP), the company said in early April.

The main bone of contention during lengthy talks was that Iraq had insisted on a 40% stake in the consortium to develop the project, while TotalEnergies had offered a 30% stake.

The Iraqi Government and TotalEnergies have agreed on a 30% stake for the state-owned Basrah Oil Company (BOC) in the GGIP. Furthermore, in agreement with the Iraqi Government, TotalEnergies has invited QatarEnergy to take a 25% stake in the GGIP.

The consortium will thus be composed of TotalEnergies with 45%, Basrah Oil Company with 30%, and QatarEnergy with 25%.

According to these agreements, TotalEnergies and its partners will invest approximately $10 billion in a project to recover flared gas on three oil fields in order to supply gas to power generation plants; a project to build a seawater treatment plant in order to provide water injection for pressure maintenance to increase regional oil production, as an alternative to the use of fresh water from rivers and aquifers; and a project to develop a 1 GW solar power plant to supply electricity to the Basrah regional grid. In agreement with Iraqi authorities, TotalEnergies will invite the Saudi company ACWA Power to join this solar project.

Other Deals in the Middle East

QatarEnergy signed in April a definitive partnership agreement with China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec) to give the Chinese state giant a 5% stake in the major North Field East (NFE) expansion project, the largest project in the history of the LNG industry.

Pursuant to the terms of the agreement, QatarEnergy will transfer to Sinopec a 5% interest in the equivalent of one NFE train with a capacity of 8 million tons per annum (MTPA). This agreement will not affect the participating interests of any of the other shareholders, QatarEnergy said.

At the end of 2022, QatarEnergy signed the longestterm contract in the history of the LNG industry in a deal to supply LNG to Sinopec for 27 years.

Aramco has recently announced it was expanding its presence in China by acquiring a 10% stake in Shenzhenlisted Rongsheng Petrochemical Co. Ltd for the equivalent of $3.6 billion

In the United Arab Emirates, ADNOC Logistics & Services (ADNOC L&S) has unveiled its Integrated Logistics Services Platform (ILSP), one of the largest turnkey offshore logistics offerings in the world that enables coordinated end-to-end management of logistics and maritime operations at its base in Mussafah, Abu Dhabi.

As part of the launch of the project, ADNOC L&S signed a $2.6 billion contract with ADNOC Offshore to provide integrated logistics services for five years, with the option of a five-year extension. The agreement includes the provision of port services, warehouse operations, heavy lifting, material handling and shipping, rig and barge moves, marine terminal operations, and waste management services.

NORWAY Ve Oil Discovery

Aker BP

$100 million

Aker BP has announced a new oil discovery through the drilling of the 25/4-15 exploration well. Preliminary estimates place the size of the discovery between 3.14 and 5.03 MMbbl of recoverable oil, and the licensees intend to evaluate the discovery in conjunction with other nearby discoveries with an eye towards potential development.