Iraqi Oil Minister Thamir Ghadhban told Vice Premier Zeng
Peiyan on Thursday in Beijing that the Iraqi people value their
traditional friendship with China and welcome Chinese enterprises
to take part in the country's oil industry reconstruction and
economic development.
He said that the Iraqi government will take steps to protect the
legitimate interests of all foreign enterprises and strive to
create a safe and peaceful environment for the development of both
individuals and businesses.
Zeng replied that the Chinese government looks forward to
enhancing its friendly relationship with Iraq in accordance with
the principles of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit.
"Iraq is an important energy power in the Middle East.
Restoration of its oil production will help stabilize the world's
turbulent oil market," he said.
He noted that China's oil industry has accumulated extensive
experience in exploration and in the utilization of refining
equipment. China also enjoys advantages in funding, technology,
skilled technicians and equipment.
To help the Iraqi people quickly improve their economic
situation, the Chinese government will encourage domestic
businesses to participate in the reconstruction of Iraq's oil
industry, Zeng said.
According to the Global Policy Forum (GPF), Iraq has the world's
second largest proven oil reserves. Oil industry experts believe
that new exploration could raise Iraq's reserves to as much as 300
or 400 billion barrels of high-grade crude, with a high recovery
rate and low processing costs.
This could, over time, mean profits counted in the hundreds of
billions of US dollars for international oil firms.
Iraq currently produces less than 3 million barrels of oil a
day.
Oil Minister Ghadhban is quoted in an October article on the GPF
website as saying, "We believe that there is at least 2.5 to 3
million barrels per day of new oil production capacity that could,
in the long term, be added to our production levels." He added that
Iraq is currently formulating its policies and is likely to open
its doors to international oil companies next year.
Many of the Western oil giants have so far hesitated to invest
in Iraq because of security concerns, but some have indicated that
they believe the situation will improve after the elections,
currently scheduled for January 30.
(Xinhua News Agency, China.org.cn?December 3, 2004)