Korea Gas Corp. Wednesday signed an initial contract to develop one of Iraq's largest gas fields after a delay of more than seven months, a senior Iraqi oil official said.
"We have signed with Kogas today an initial contract to develop Akkas gas field," Abdul Mahdy al-Ameedi, head of the Iraqi Oil Ministry's Petroleum Contracts and Licensing Directorate, told Dow Jones Newswires by telephone from Baghdad.
The initial contract will be sent to the cabinet for approval before its final signature, Ameedi said.
After the withdrawal of Kazakhstan's state gas company KazMunaiGas EP JSC from the project last month, Kogas decided to double its share, taking over KazMunaiGas's stake, Kogas said in a regulatory filing last week.
Kogas will now have a 75% stake in the Akkas venture, up from 37.5% previously, with Iraq's state-run North Oil Co. holding the other 25%.
After a final signing of the contract takes place, expected next month, Kogas may find a new partner to help develop the field, which has estimated proven reserves of 5.6 trillion cubic feet, Kogas had said.
The signing of the contract had been delayed twice since KazMunaiGas and Kogas won the right to develop the field last year, due to disputes with provincial authorities in Anbar province, where the field is located.