MOSCOW, April 25 (UPI) -- Russian oil company Lukoil is considering joining a joint venture to develop the Nassiriya oil field in Iraq, the company's board of directors said.
Lukoil, Russia's largest private oil company, said its board of directors were considering a joint venture with its counterparts at Russia's state-owned exploration and production company Zarubezhneft to develop the oil field and help build an associated refinery.
Lukoil is already involved in developments of the West-Qurna 2 project in southern Iraq. The company said it recently signed an agreement with the Iraqi Ministry of Industry to estimate the prospects for building a plant that would utilize gas associated with the oil field.
First oil was produced from West Qurna-2 in March. It reached a daily production reach of 120,000 barrels and has an estimated 34 billion barrels worth of recoverable reserves.
Iraqi oil production from January to February, the last full month for which data are available from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, increased 13 percent to 3.3 million bpd.
