Russian oil players will be allowed to invest $4 billion in Iraq under a new co-operation memorandum, Russian Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said today, after his ministry wrote off most of Iraq's debt.
Kudrin said one of the companies mentioned in the memorandum was Lukoil, which has a $3.7 billion Saddam Hussein-era deal to develop Iraq's giant West Qurna field.
"We have a agreement from the Iraqi side to pay special attention to the previously signed deals," Kudrin told reporters.
Meanwhile, Russian producer Lukoil hopes that a new memorandum between the Russian and Iraqi governments will open the way for the company to start work on Iraq's West Qurna oilfield within three to fice year, the company's vice president Leonid Fedun said.
"We will now be waiting for permission from the government of Iraq to start working on the field. This memorandum states that the Iraqi government will support our intentions," Fedun told Reuters.
"We would now be keen to review some parameters, refresh the contract and as soon as it is done, we will be ready to invest. The memorandum says it could happen within three to five years," he said.
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