The news is especially troubling to Turkey, as Iraq's Oil Ministry excluded Turkey's state-owned Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) from an April list of 35 companies qualifying to bid in tenders to develop the nation's oil and gas fields.The New York Times said Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP -- the original partners in the Iraq Petroleum Company -- along with Chevron and a number of smaller oil companies, were in talks with Iraq's Oil Ministry for no-bid contracts to service Iraq's largest fields, according to ministry officials, oil company officials and an American diplomat.
"The deals, expected to be announced on June 30, will lay the foundation for the first commercial work for the major companies in Iraq since the American invasion, and open a new and potentially lucrative country for their operations," the paper reported.
According to report, the US companies were awarded with "no-bid contracts," which are unusual for the industry, and the offers prevailed over others by more than 40 companies, including companies in Russia, China and India.
The New York Times stressed: "There was suspicion among many in the Arab world and among parts of the American public that the United States had gone to war in Iraq precisely to secure the oil wealth these contracts seek to extract.
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