Iraq has extended by two weeks to Feb. 15 the deadline for international oil companies to register for the second bidding round announced Dec. 31 to upgrade some of the country's vast oil and gas fields, an authorized oil ministry spokesman said Monday.
"We have decided to move the deadline to Feb. 15 instead of Feb. 1 announced earlier in order to give more time for companies to register," the spokesman told Dow Jones Newswires by telephone from Baghdad.
He said that the deadline was moved because there were several days off last week as the country held general elections and companies were not given enough time to register.
Iraq opened the race on Dec. 31 for international companies to compete for the development of a total of 16 oil and gas fields categorized in 11 groupings.
The spokesman said several companies had registered for the second bidding round by presenting their qualification documents to the Ministry's Petroleum Contracts and Licensing Directorate.