The Iraqi oil ministry will hold a road show in London next month to present nearly three dozen international oil companies with data and details of its first bid round, a ministry official told International Oil Daily from Baghdad Wednesday (IOD Jul.17,p1). "The date has been fixed for Oct. 13, and 34 international companies will be invited to attend," said the official, from the ministry's contracts and licensing directorate.

Iraq in April prequalified 35 of the 120 companies that applied to participate in the first post-war bid round and said other firms could take part in later rounds (IOD Apr.15,p1).

But after making it on to the list of prequalifiers, the UK's Premier Oil was dropped for failing to provide the necessary technical and financial documents. One condition set by the ministry was that the output of a company wanting to bid should be above that of the Iraqi field it seeks to operate.

"Premier's qualification based on the technical and financial criteria does not allow it to participate in the first bid round, which includes mainly giant fields. However, it will be able to participate in the next rounds," the official said.

The eight fields on offer in the first round are the main oil producing fields of Kirkuk and Bai Hassan in the north; the Rumaila, Zubair, West Qurna (Phase 1) and three Missan oil fields -- Buzurgan, Fauqa and Abu Ghirab -- in the south; and the Akkas gas field in western Iraq and the Mansouria gas field in the east.

The list of qualified companies expected to be invited to the London road show includes industry giants BP, Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Total and Royal Dutch Shell, as well as European firms BG, Edison, Eni, Maersk, Repsol YPF, StatoilHydro and Wintershall, and US companies Anadarko, ConocoPhillips, Hess, Marathon Oil and Occidental, and Canada's Nexen.

Two Russian firms, Lukoil and Gazprom Neft, are on the list, alongside Australian BHP Billiton and Woodside Petroleum; Chinese Sinochem, Sinopec, China National Offshore Oil Corp. and China National Petroleum Corp.; and Japanese Inpex, Japex, Mitsubishi and Nippon Oil. Other Asian prequalifiers are Korea's Kogas, India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp., Malaysia's Petronas and Indonesia's Pertamina.

The 34 companies have been divided into three categories, the official said. Category A includes companies that can bid as operators on any of the eight fields. Category B firms can bid to operate any field except Kirkuk, a complex field with a fractured reservoir and sour gas. Category C companies cannot bid as operators except as part of a consortium, and cannot lead a consortium.

Iraqi Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahristani has said the ministry will launch a second bid round before the end of the year that will include developed and undeveloped fields.

Companies will be presented in London with the tender protocol covering bidding parameters and conditions, technical data on the fields, and the model service contract that will be used for the 20-year deals. The oil ministry in June signed a contract with consultant Gaffney Cline and Associates to help package the field data. It said then it would make some data available to bidders online. The consultant is now finalizing the model Producing Field Technical Service Contract.

China National Petroleum Corp. has snatched the first long-term service contract for the Al-Ahdab field. Shell is expected to sign the first gas deal soon (IOD Sep.3,p1).

The ministry earlier laid out an ambitious timetable giving firms six months from the receipt of tender protocols and data to submit bids, which would have allowed it to announce winners in June 2009. But the final deadlines for submissions and awards will now be announced in October.

The London event will open with a speech by al-Shahristani, followed by presentations on contract terms, a discussion of technical and legal issues and a detailed explanation of the ensuing process, the official said. There will also be a question-and-answer session.

The Iraqi delegation will include a number of ministry officials, as well as representatives of companies involved in the round that operate under ministry auspices.

Companies that win contracts will be expected to submit development plans within six months of getting government approval and to boost production capacity to defined targets within the first three years, or by the start of 2013.

The target increases are 200,000 barrels per day for Kirkuk, 100,000 b/d for Bai Hassan, 800,000 b/d for Rumaila north and south, 250,000 b/d for Zubair, 150,000 b/d for West Qurna and 150,000 b/d for the Missan fields.

In a second phase, running for three years, companies would be expected to introduce enhanced oil recovery, which Iraqi officials say might be needed to achieve the targets in some fields.

Ruba Husari, Dubai