Iraqi Oil Law Nears Final Stage

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

Iraqi Oil Law Nears Final Stage
By SINAN SALAHEDDIN 04.18.07, 6:24 AM ET

Iraq's hotly debated draft oil law is to be sent to parliament
"within the coming few days if everything goes well," the Oil
Ministry spokesman said on Wednesday.

"The draft is with the State Shura Council now to be put in a
legal form after being written in technical language," Assem
Jihad told The Associated Press in a phone interview. He gave
no date for the bill's introduction.

-snip-

The Iraqi oil legislation, which was endorsed by the cabinet
last February, will open the door for the government to sign
contracts for exploration and production of the country's
vast untapped reserves.

-snip-

Passage of the law, thought to have been written with
heavy U.S. involvement, is one of four benchmarks the Bush
administration has set for Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's
struggling government.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/04/18/ap3624381.html

[Delphinus]

1. In other words,

the Iraqi people get screwed? It's written by Forbes, who I'm sure support this misadministration, so there's probably much more to the story than what little they've written.

[Eugene]

2. Actually, the AP wrote the story.

I just chose Forbes as one of earliest sites that carried it.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6567153,00.html

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=3051785

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070418/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_oil_law_2

[maddezmom]

3. Draft law keeps oil in Iraqi hands: officials

By Lydia Georgi AFP - Wednesday, April 18DUBAI (AFP) - Iraqi officials insisted Wednesday that a controversial bill due to be submitted to parliament will keep the country's oil wealth in Iraqi hands and benefit all of its warring communities.

"Under no circumstances would Iraq relinquish its authority, its responsibility and its control over Iraq's natural resources," Oil Minister Hussein Shahristani told reporters in the United Arab Emirates.

The bill, approved by the Shiite-led government in February after months of wrangling, opens Iraq's oil sector to foreign investors.

But Shahristani said incentives to international oil companies to invest in the industry would be through the profit margins they will achieve and "not by control of Iraq's wealth."

Some Iraqi oil experts and politicians have voiced concern that production sharing contracts envisaged by the bill will deliver the country's oil riches to foreign firms on a platter.

Others have objected to powers given to regional authorities to negotiate contracts.

more:http://uk.news.yahoo.com/afp/20070418/tpl-iraq-energy-oil-politics-b04fc5e.html