Comments on: Clearing up the muddy Iraq oil debate http://www.iraqoilreport.com/2007/09/21/clearing-up-the-muddy-iraq-oil-debate/ Fri, 25 Jul 2008 06:12:27 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Iraq and the Oil Overshadowed at Iraq Oil Report http://www.iraqoilreport.com/2007/09/21/clearing-up-the-muddy-iraq-oil-debate/#comment-38 Iraq and the Oil Overshadowed at Iraq Oil Report Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:56:19 +0000 http://iraqoilreport.com/2007/09/21/clearing-up-the-muddy-iraq-oil-debate/#comment-38 [...] Clearing up the muddy Iraq oil debate [...] [...] Clearing up the muddy Iraq oil debate [...]

]]> By: Lorraine Lilja http://www.iraqoilreport.com/2007/09/21/clearing-up-the-muddy-iraq-oil-debate/#comment-40 Lorraine Lilja Mon, 24 Sep 2007 23:20:18 +0000 http://iraqoilreport.com/2007/09/21/clearing-up-the-muddy-iraq-oil-debate/#comment-40 Mr. Lando, I expected your article to be better researched. Sources I respect report that the real problem with the hydrocarbon law is the U.S. insistence that PSA's be signed with international oil interests. Oil is easily accessible in Iraq, and doesn't require assistance from other nations. They have been harvesting their oil for a long time. These PSAs would be binding contracts for up to 30 years, and payments to the oil companies have been estimated to be as high as 80 percent of the profits. My information sources are numerous, but I suggest you read the article in The UK Register. Sincerely, Lorraine Lilja Mr. Lando,

I expected your article to be better researched. Sources I respect report that the real problem with the hydrocarbon law is the U.S. insistence that PSA’s be signed with international oil interests. Oil is easily accessible in Iraq, and doesn’t require assistance from other nations. They have been harvesting their oil for a long time.

These PSAs would be binding contracts for up to 30 years, and payments to the oil companies have been estimated to be as high as 80 percent of the profits.

My information sources are numerous, but I suggest you read the article in The UK Register.

Sincerely,

Lorraine Lilja

]]> By: theBhc http://www.iraqoilreport.com/2007/09/21/clearing-up-the-muddy-iraq-oil-debate/#comment-39 theBhc Mon, 24 Sep 2007 20:12:02 +0000 http://iraqoilreport.com/2007/09/21/clearing-up-the-muddy-iraq-oil-debate/#comment-39 Mr. Lando, I feel I must clear up your attempt to clear up the state and implications of the Iraq Oil Law. You rightly describe the Revenue Sharing Law as separate legislation that will arbitrate the distribution of Iraq's share of oil revenue. That, however, is not where the concerns of the Iraqi oil workers union and others lie. The concerns do lie with the federal oil law and the potential for undue foreign influence on oil contracts (most likely PSAs) by the Federal Oil and Gas Council (FOGC). The draft Oil Law states quite explicitly that the FOGC will comprise not only Iraqi officials, but also "executive managers of important related petroleum companies." While the provenance of these managers remains unstated, purposefully so, it is not difficult to imagine who might sit on this council. Moreover, the terms and conditions of the contracts approved by the FOGC will likely be held in the strictest confidence and it is exactly from this point that the concerns about the oil revenue arise. The public will not likely be privy to the revenue details as specified in these PSAs. PSAs will be approved, not by any transparent, democratic body, but by an unaccountable board comprised, at least in part, by unelected and, as indicated above, foreign appointees. That we have already seen Hunt Oil -- closely linked to Bush and Cheney -- sign a PSA with the Kurds is precisely how much of the future conduct of the FOGC is expected to act: deals conducted in secret and suddenly announced, while the details of the revenue distribution between Hunt Oil and the KRG remain unknown. Regards. Ken Anderson Mr. Lando,

I feel I must clear up your attempt to clear up the state and implications of the Iraq Oil Law. You rightly describe the Revenue Sharing Law as separate legislation that will arbitrate the distribution of Iraq’s share of oil revenue. That, however, is not where the concerns of the Iraqi oil workers union and others lie. The concerns do lie with the federal oil law and the potential for undue foreign influence on oil contracts (most likely PSAs) by the Federal Oil and Gas Council (FOGC).

The draft Oil Law states quite explicitly that the FOGC will comprise not only Iraqi officials, but also “executive managers of important related petroleum companies.” While the provenance of these managers remains unstated, purposefully so, it is not difficult to imagine who might sit on this council. Moreover, the terms and conditions of the contracts approved by the FOGC will likely be held in the strictest confidence and it is exactly from this point that the concerns about the oil revenue arise. The public will not likely be privy to the revenue details as specified in these PSAs. PSAs will be approved, not by any transparent, democratic body, but by an unaccountable board comprised, at least in part, by unelected and, as indicated above, foreign appointees.

That we have already seen Hunt Oil — closely linked to Bush and Cheney — sign a PSA with the Kurds is precisely how much of the future conduct of the FOGC is expected to act: deals conducted in secret and suddenly announced, while the details of the revenue distribution between Hunt Oil and the KRG remain unknown.

Regards.
Ken Anderson

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