Iraq’s largest oil fields reduce staff
Production levels should remain steady, but BP and Exxon have withdrawn some staff from southern Iraq in response to insurgent violence in the north.
Workers move equipment at a drilling rig at the Rumaila oil field in Basra. (BEN VAN HEUVELEN/Iraq Oil Report/Metrography)
BASRA - The international oil companies in charge of Iraq's two most prolific oil fields have significantly reduced their presence in Basra after a shockwave of violence struck northern Iraq and Shia militia activity and recruitment began to spike throughout the south.
BP and ExxonMobil, which operate Rumaila and West Qurna 1, respectively, have sent most or all of their foreign staff out of the country, according to varying accounts given by Iraqi workers at those fields. There is no indication that the fields will have to reduce production, which together account for roughly half of Iraq's total oil output.
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