"It is frustrating. The oil ministry's remuneration fee is very low," said a Japanese executive about Iraq's fourth oil bidding round.
The oil companies should have been salivating at the prospect of exploring the country with the world's third-largest conventional reserves, and probably the biggest potential for new discoveries. Forty seven of them qualified to bid in last week's auction.
But over two days, only three blocks out of 12 on offer were awarded, with a fourth bid turned down by the ministry of oil. The super-major companies with existing Iraqi contracts - BP, Shell, Total and ENI - were conspicuously absent. The Russian giant Lukoil, with its Japanese partner Inpex, secured Block 10 in the south-east, while Pakistan Petroleum picked up Block 8 in the restive Diyala province.
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