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October 11, 2008 1:13:30 AM CDT

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Big Oil Deals Absent as Iraq Opens for Bids

Posted Jun 30, 08 11:13 AM CDT in Business,  World 

(Newser) – The Iraqi government opened six oil fields to bidding today, without mention of expected no-bid contracts with big Western oil companies, the AP notes; it had been reported that several big companies were close to signing short-term deals with Iraq's government. "There is no preferential treatment for anyone, no matter who," a spokesman said.

"There was never any intention to award the contracts without a tender," he added. The New York Times had reported that Royal Dutch Shell, BP, Exxon Mobil, Chevron, and Total SA were all close to signing deals with Iraq, as a way to boost production in the short term before the country agreed on a national oil law.

Source Associated Press

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A refinery worker controls a valve on a pipeline at an oil refinery in Basra, 550 kilometers (340 miles) southeast of Baghdad, Iraq, in this photo taken March 2007.   (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)
Iraq's Oil Minister, Hussain al-Shahristani, gestures as he speaks at a press conference in Baghdad earlier today.   (AP Photo)
Refinery workers repair an installation at an oil refinery in Basra, 550 kilometers (340 miles) southeast of Baghdad, Iraq, in this photo taken March 2007.   (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)
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Iraq  • Chevron  • BP  • Iraq oil  • Exxon Mobil  • Royal Dutch Shell  • Total SA


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