BAGHDAD- The head of Iraq's state-oil marketer SOMO said on Sunday that he expected oil prices to remain at current levels for the whole of 2018.

"I expect oil prices to stay stable at their current levels at least until the end of 2018," SOMO chief Alaa al-Yasiri told reporters at a SOMO event in Baghdad. "Oil price stability depends on political stability in our region."

During Sunday's event, Yasiri announced that SOMO's new strategy will be to sign joint ventures with Asian companies - from China, India, and South Korea - to help target Asian markets.

He added that 60 percent of Iraq's oil exports are directed to Asia.

"We are aiming to win more share of the Asian markets and to achieve this strategy we will have joint ventures with energy companies from Asia," said Yasiri.

In one of several deals announced on Sunday, Yasiri announced a profit-sharing deal with China's state-run Zhenhua Oil to help market Iraqi crude to Chinese refineries.

"The deal we signed with Zhenhua is only a starting point that will pave the way for more deals and joint ventures with other Asian companies from Japan, India, China and Korea," Yasiri said.

He also announced that Iraq has signed long-term crude supply contracts with major Indian energy companies including Reliance, which keeps Iraq as a top crude supplier to India for 2018.

Yasiri also said that delays in shipping Kirkuk crude to Iran stemmed from contractual procedures in selecting truck shippers and was not due to security concerns.

He said the Oil Ministry will soon select four local shipping companies to start the transport of an initial 40,000 bpd to Iran.

Exports from Kirkuk oilfields have been suspended amid an ongoing dispute between Baghdad and the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) over the use of the Ceyhan export pipeline to Turkey.

Iraq is the second-largest producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and relies on oil to generate most of its budget revenue.

 

(Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed; writing by Raya Jalabi; editing by Catherine Evans and Jason Neely) ((Raya.Jalabi@thomsonreuters.com;))