Al-Ghad

The draft Iraqi Oil and Gas Law is discussed in the previous Arabic article and is exclusively published in Al-Ghad. The draft law was obtained by the author from several sources. It may not be the final text which is already or soon to be discussed in the Iraqi parliament. It is not expected to be changed except for the addition of supplements. The subject of this study is extremely important fo the future of Iraq and will affect the country for generations to come. The author is a prominent specialist in the oil and petrochemical industries.

A full translation will be available as soon as possible. Following is the author’s introduction:

In these remarks I try to discuss a draft “Law of Oil and Gas”, dated January 15, 2007, printed in the Arabic language. It was originally submitted by Messrs. Farouk Al-Qasim, Thamir Al-Ghathban and Tariq Shafiq in the English Language in July 2006, and the law is almost a complete Arab translation apart from a few paragraphs. It should also be noted that the Arabic draft of the January 15, 2007 law indicated three additional supplements to be incuded in the draft. These supplements are part of the law, and it is understood that the paragraphs may be of great importance. And it is strange that those concerned in this draft claim that the draft was not complete yet (as of January 27, 2007), despite the fact that all information provided by the international news media say that the Council of Ministers endorsed the the draft.