Iraq: KRG awards Qara Dagh block to Chevron

The Kurdistan Regional Government has awarded the Qara Dagh block to Chevron Corp.

The former holders drilled the block’s first exploratory well, which confirmed the presence of an active petroleum system but failed to establish commercial rates. The group agreed to relinquish the block in late 2012 (OGJ Online, Feb. 14, 2013).

The former owners were Calgary independents Niko Resources Ltd., operator with a 49% interest, Vast Exploration Inc. 25%, and Groundstar Resources Ltd. 6%. The KRG had a 20% carried interest.

Niko, Vast, and Groundstar relinquished their interests in exchange for proceeds equal to the carrying amount of the asset. Niko Resources said it expects to receive $15 million within 60 days of the earlier of formal signing of the production-sharing contract between the KRG and Chevron on May 31.