Gulf Keystone Petroleum mum on potential sale

LONDON, Feb. 25 (UPI) -- Gulf Keystone Petroleum, active in Iraq, said Wednesday it was keeping a tight lid on the reasons behind an announcement of a possible sale of the company.

The company announced it was engaged in talks with "a number of parties" about a possible sale of the company or transaction of assets.

The British company is producing oil from seven wells in the Shaikan development in the Kurdish north of Iraq. In early February, it said it's owed an unstated amount in payments from the Kurdish government for its operations. As a short-term measure, crude oil was redirected to the local market and exports by truck through Turkey were suspended.

As of Dec. 29, the companies said production was around 40,000 barrels of oil per day, with a record number of 354 trucks crossing the Turkish border with a combined 58,000 barrels of Shaikan crude oil for export sale.

Mark Antelme, a spokesman for the company, said in response to email questions the details about the possible sale were limited.

"We're not saying it's either because of issues with the Kurdistan Regional Government or the oil price environment," he said. "Gulf Keystone Petroleum has a world class asset and is in preliminary talks, which the company is obliged to update the market on."

Crude oil prices are down about half from their June highs around $100 per barrel, forcing many energy companies to eliminate staff and cut back on spending for exploration and production.

Violence in Iraq, meanwhile, had posed a threat to companies working in parts of Iraq. The group calling itself the Islamic State has taken control over territory in the region.

In January, John Gerstenlauer, Gulf Keystone's chief executive officer, said 2014 ended on a high note for operations in the Kurdish north. Production and export sales from the region increased nearly 300 percent last year.