Rosneft is revitalizing Iraqi Kurdistan’s oil and gas sector through the provision of financial assistance and a series of infrastructure agreements. The latest is a plan to construct a huge 30bcm/year capacity gas pipeline from the Kurdistan region to its northern neighbor Turkey. The 18 September announcement came just a week before the controversial 25 September referendum on Kurdistan’s independence.
That Rosneft is to construct the gas export pipeline comes as little surprise. The firm has emerged this year as one of the most important players in the KRG’s oil and gas sector, and as a powerful political player in Erbil. Once the KRG reached an agreement with the Pearl Consortium (Crescent Petroleum 35%, Dana Gas 35%, OMV 10%, MOL 10%, RWE 10%) in August to provide gas for export, Rosneft looked to be a frontrunner to build the necessary infrastructure (MEES, 8 September). (CONTINUED - 1559 WORDS)
