Q&A: Montaser Kadhim Haloub, director of the Southern Oil Projects Commission

BASRA - The state-run Oil Projects Company, through its Southern Oil Projects Commission, plays a key role in implementing some of the most consequential projects in southern Iraq's oil sector.

Engineer Montaser Kadhim Haloub is the director of the Commission. In an interview with Iraq Oil Report he gave updates on a recently completed project at Rumaila, Iraq's largest oil field, and several other projects at fields in southern Iraq.

The Oil Projects Company is also involved in two sets of projects with the potential to increase Iraq's export capacity and ease a critical bottleneck that is currently constraining the country's ability to produce and sell crude: the Sealines 4 and 5 projects, and a prospective pipeline from Basra to Aqaba in Jordan.

While the sealine projects appear to have some momentum, they still appear to be at least a year away from beginning to help increase export capacity from the Basra Gulf. The Basra-Aqaba project appears to be somewhat further from being realized, as there is not yet approval to move forward.

A full text of the interview is available below for Iraq Oil Report subscribers.