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More participation of Korean needed in Kurdistan
and Iraqi reconstruction projects
6.4.2007
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April 6, 2007
Though South Korea deployed the third-largest number
of troops in Iraq, following the US and the UK, its
participation in Iraq’s oil development and
reconstruction projects has been insignificant. Even
in the Kurdistan region, where Korean armed forces
are stationed, South Korea cannot utilize the
advantage of being one of the largest contingents.
The reason is that the government has restricted the
advances of Korean businesses into the region for
safety concerns.
A ruling Uri Party lawmaker, Han Byeong-do, is the
chairman of the special committee of Iraqi
reconstruction. He acquired the Korean National Oil
Corporation’s report named ‘Petroleum Development in
the Kurdistan Region` on April 5. The report says a
Norwegian petroleum company, DNO ASA, made a
production sharing agreement (PSA) with the regional
government for exploring several oil fields in 2004.
And the company succeeded in drilling last June and
November. Other petroleum companies in Turkey and
Canada also had the PSA and conducted drilling three
times last year.
But it was only February when the consortium of
Korean businesses was formed and visited the
Kurdistan region, and the group is still in
discussions with the Kurdistan government about
where to explore for oil. The Kurdistan region has
five oil fields containing 3.1 billion barrels.
The South Korean government does not allow Korean
companies to make inroads into the region due to
safety concerns.
According to the reference material about the Iraqi
construction market by the Ministry of Construction
and Transportation, South Korean businesses are
securing fewer orders than before even though demand
is high due to Iraqi reconstruction efforts. Korean
companies won 73 construction projects and earned
$6.45 billion from 1977 to 1991 (before the first
Gulf War).
After the outbreak of the second Gulf War, however,
they had received just $0.3 billion in orders from
March 2003 to last August. Kuwait and Saudi Arabia
won $2.3 billion in orders and $1.2 billion in
orders in 2005.
Under such circumstance, the visit of Iraqi Prime
Minister Nouri al-Maliki to South Korea could be a
good opportunity for Korea to intensify diplomatic
efforts. During his visit from April 11 to 13, he
will be accompanied by 25 attendants including the
Oil and Electricity Ministers, and take part in a
summit talk with Korean President Roh.
In the talk, they will discuss the two nations`
cooperation in the natural resources development and
construction projects and increasing the Korean
government’s participation in the reconstruction of
Iraq.
The Iraqi government is keen for South Korean
businesses to take part in the reconstruction
projects more. According to one South Korean
lawmaker who visited the city of Najaf on January,
the mayor of Najaf, Assad Sultan Hakim, proposed 15
reconstruction projects totaling $76.41 million,
including designing projects for clean water
supplies and preparation projects for an electricity
supply chain, with South Korean businesses.
donga com
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