After more than five years of stagnation, Iraq finally seems to be opening its doors to the international oil industry. First China's CNPC concluded a revised contract for developing the Al-Ahdab oil field, then Royal Dutch Shell reached a heads of agreement on a major gas project in the south, which could see Iraq joining the gas exporters' club in the next few years. If all goes to plan, Baghdad by next summer could award at least eight new long-term contracts for international oil companies to help revamp major producing fields ravaged by decades of conflict and sanctions. So far things are progressing swiftly as the ministry is gearing up for an Oct.13 road show to shed more light on the first bid round launched in late June.

All agree the opening is long overdue: It provides an opportunity for Iraq to regain its place in the regional and global oil business, and rebuild an efficient and modern industry as the backbone for the new Iraq. But there are naturally differences of opinion over the nature and conditions of the opening, which in our opinion, is a healthy matter. The debate over which model best serves national interests can pave the way to a common understanding and a win-win situation for Iraq and the oil companies.

For many years, Energy Intelligence has taken the lead in providing thorough and reliable coverage of Iraq's oil industry. It continues to do so today. The Iraq Oil Forum takes that coverage a step further by providing a platform for dialogue, presenting decision-makers with a variety of opinions on key issues and oil executives with insight into the debate.

Three Iraqi oil experts who played a role in Iraq’s oil industry at different times have accepted our invitation to comment on three questions that we raised. With their diverse opinions, we open the platform for a dialogue among all those interested in Iraq. We invite comments on these issues and proposals of other discussion topics.

Ruba Husari, Dubai