Iraq has agreed a $526.6mn drilling deal with China’s Zhongman for the West Qurna 2 oilfield, Reuters has reported.
Zhongman Petroleum and Natural Gas will drill 66 production oil wells at the field under a 28-month contract.
West Qurna 2, operated by Russia’s Lukoil, has production capacity of over 400,000 barrels per day but its current actual output stands at less than 350,000 bpd.
West Qurna is one of Iraq’s largest oil fields, located north of Rumaila field, west of Basra. It is believed to hold 43bn barrels of recoverable reserves.
The field was closed to Western firms due to years-long sanctions but has reopened for development in recent years.
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