Polish firms eyeing favored role in rebuilding Iraqi oil sector

April 16, 2003
Poland, a staunch supporter of the US-led war in Iraq, anticipates that US businesses will give its firms preferential treatment in picking partners to help rebuild the Middle East state, especially its oil sector, according to government and industry sources.

By an OGJ correspondent

NICOSIA, Apr. 16 -- Poland, a staunch supporter of the US-led war in Iraq, anticipates that US businesses will give its firms preferential treatment in picking partners to help rebuild the Middle East state, especially its oil sector, according to government and industry sources.

"In Washington, the fact that Poland was part of the (military) coalition creates a great reception for our country, especially by the political elite," said Piotr Ogrodzinski, director of the America department at Warsaw's foreign ministry on Wednesday.

During the war, President George W. Bush praised Poland for sending 200 troops to join the US-led coalition, while Defense Sec. Donald Rumsfeld singled out Polish commandos for their effective work in helping to seize key Iraqi oil export facilities.

As a further sign of its esteem, the US invited Poland, along with Britain and Australia, to a meeting on Tuesday with former Gen. Jay Garner, selected by President Bush to run postwar Iraq's civilian affairs until an interim Iraqi government is in place.

Ogrodzinski said Polish companies in the oil and gas sector may be the first from Poland to be directly involved in Iraq, helping to boost its oil production capabilities after the military conflict ends. "It could be a question of only weeks before we have some optimistic news for our fuel sector."

He said officials from Nafta Polska, a state holding company with stakes in Poland's major refiners such as PKN Orlen and soon-to-be-privatized Rafineria Gdanska (RG) SA, will travel to Kuwait within days to seek business opportunities.

Halliburton invitation
RG earlier said it was invited by Halliburton Co.'s Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR) to hold talks on a role in rebuilding Iraqi oil facilities.

"We have been invited to talks and are to achieve the best possible result. All will depend on what the United States offers and what we can find in the area as profitable and interesting," said RG Pres. Pawel Olechnowicz.

While saying it would be "premature" to speak about details of the proposal, Olechnowicz confirmed that he met with a KBR vice-president on a visit to Poland. KBR is currently under contract to the US Army Corps of Engineers for emergency war repairs and environmental clean-ups (OGJ Online, Apr. 15, 2003).

Olechnowicz cautioned that contract decisions are up to the US firm, but he nonetheless declared that the Gdansk refiner will have its "share" of business in rebuilding Iraq. "The Americans pay money, and they will make decisions. That they include Poland in part of the project is a fact," Olechnowicz said.

Asked about a possible area of RG's work, Olechnowicz said that the oil extracting and refining industry was on the agenda of the talks. He added that leasing oil fields would also be "of significance" to the Polish firm.

Poland's Deputy Labor and Economy Minister Jacek Piechota on Tuesday echoed Olechnowicz's views about the dominant role of US companies in the rebuilding of Iraq, saying that Polish companies could mainly count on being subcontractors to US firms.

Piechota also said Poland wanted to recover Iraqi debts amounting to $560 million. He suggested Poland might participate in the privatization of the Iraqi economy in lieu of some of the debts or accept repayment in the form of Iraqi oil.

Poland's war performance
Poland provided the US-led coalition against Iraq a contingent of around 200 military personnel, including an undisclosed number of commandos from the antiterrorist Operational Maneuver Response Group (GROM).

GROM commandos played a key role in the early days of the war, working with US Navy Seals, Special Boat Units, and Air Force Special Operations pilots to seize five key installations: two oil-pumping stations and a metering station near Fao, as well as the offshore oil terminals at Mina al-Bakr and Khor al-Amaya.

With those lightning raids, US military officers said they had prevented the Iraqi government from dumping 1.8 million bbl of oil into the Persian Gulf. "We needed to seize all five points simultaneously," said Capt. Robert S. Harward, who commands the Naval Special Warfare Task Group that coordinated the raids. "It went like clockwork."