On May 23, Iraq signed a major agreement with China's Intercontinental Oil and Gas Company (Geo-Jade Petroleum) on Wednesday to jointly develop oil fields and build large-scale refineries, petrochemical complexes and power complexes to boost the country's oil and electricity supply capacity.

The mega-project agreement, won by a consortium of Intercontinental Oil and Gas and Iraq's Crescent Basra (Hilalal-Basra) company, will integrate upstream oil and gas production with downstream refining, petrochemical and power generation operations, the country's oil minister Hayan Abdel Ghani said at a signing ceremony in Baghdad.

"Cooperation with intercontinental oil and gas marks a major leap forward in the development of Iraq's oil resources and the revitalization of the country's economy," the minister said. The project will boost the country's economy and provide employment opportunities for thousands of Iraqis. "

The projects are all located in Basra province, the country's southern oil hub. The agreement includes the expansion of Basra's Tuba field from 20,000 b/d to 100,000 b/d, the construction of a 200,000-b/d refinery, a 620,000-tonne-per-year petrochemical plant, a 520,000-tonne-per-year fertilizer plant, and two power stations — including a 400-megawatt solar plant and a 650-megawatt gas-fired power plant. The amount of the project and the estimated duration of the project were not officially disclosed.

The project marks an important milestone in the development of Iraq's oil and gas industry, boosting the national economy and meeting the growing demand for electricity. Oil sales currently account for about 95 per cent of Iraq's federal revenues. In recent years, China has gained an important foothold in oil-rich Iraq, becoming a major player in many fields, and is now one of the largest importers of Iraqi crude oil.

Intercontinental Oil & Gas is an international independent energy company focusing on oil and gas exploration and development, based on the international oil and gas market, focusing on investment and development of upstream oil and gas projects along the Belt and Road, with assets mainly distributed in the Middle East, Central Asia and Eastern Europe.(This article is from the official website of Seetao www.seetao.com. Reprinting without permission is strictly prohibited. Please indicate Seetao.com + original link when reprinting) Seetao.com Strategy Column Editor/Sun Fengjuan