Wednesday, Nov 25, 2009
KUWAIT CITY, Kuwait (AFP)--Iraq and Kuwait are engaged in "technical negotiations" to strike a deal over production from border oilfields that have been at the heart of previous conflicts, a Kuwaiti oil official has said.
"Consultations are ongoing to select the best mechanism that fairly guarantees the rights of both sides and serves their interests," oil ministry assistant undersecretary for technical affairs Ali bin Sabt said.
"We are currently studying a number of relevant international agreements as a guide to reach the best agreement," Sabt said in statements to the official KUNA news agency published by the local press on Wednesday.
Sabt however provided no specific details about the negotiations or meetings between officials from the two countries. Iraq said earlier in the week that the joint technical commission will meet before the end of November.
A number of oilfields lie on the joint borders of the two Arab nations, including the Iraqi super giant Rumaila field which extends into Kuwait where it is known as Ritqa. There are other fields in Zubair and Safwan.
In 2005, the two countries formed a joint technical commission to regulate production from the fields.
The then energy minister of Kuwait, Sheikh Ahmad Fahad al-Sabah, had said that the two nations were discussing one of two options.
The first is to have the same sort of arrangement as applies in the Saudi-Kuwaiti neutral zone, where Riyadh and Kuwait City share production equally.
The second is to hire a foreign company to oversee production.
Most of Iraq's current production of 2.5 million barrels per day comes from Rumaila.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
25-11-09 1056GMT
