Iraq expects to sign an agreement for the Akkas natural gas field next week after clearing some demands that led to the deal being postponed at the last minute in November, a senior Iraqi Oil Ministry official said Monday.

"We are going to initial the agreement next week between Feb. 22 and 24," said Abdul Mahdy al-Ameedi, head of the ministry's Petroleum Contracts and Licensing Directorate.

Iraq originally planned to sign the Akkas agreement Nov. 14 with Korea Gas Corp. (036460.SE), known as Kogas, and its partner KazMunaiGaz EP JSC (RDGZ.KZ), Kazakhstan 's state fuel producer. The deal stalled on concerns by local authorities in Anbar province, where the field is located, who feared gas from Akkas would be exported without benefiting nearby communities.

Kogas and KazMunaiGas were awarded the field, with estimated proven reserves of 5.6 trillion cubic feet, at a bidding round held in Baghdad in October.

Kogas and KazMunaigGas have agreed to produce 400 million cubic feet of gas a day from the field, at a price of $5.50 for every barrel of oil equivalent produced.

Authorities in the western Anbar province announced last month their approval of the deal, after the central government in Baghdad agreed to meet some of their demands, such as extending a pipeline to a power station under construction in the province and agreeing to build a 250-megawatt power plant near the field.

Deals for two other smaller gas fields, Mansouriya in the eastern Dialya province and Siba in southern Basra governorate, were initialed in November. However, they are still awaiting government approval before final signatures.

"The cabinet wants to approve the three fields together," Ameedi said. Final signatures to these three fields would take place after the cabinet approval, he said.

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