Azerbaijan, Baku, 20 June / Trend A.Taghiyeva /
LUKOIL might not need a partner in the West Qurna-2 project in Iraq, President of LUKOIL Vagit Alekperov said in an interview to RT Channel.
"The issue of financial and technological partners is not under consideration as we have already solved these issues. The question is about acquiring a partner capable of providing us with the opportunity to work steadily," Alekperov said.
According to him, the West Qurna-2 project is cost-effective, and the Iraqi government is actively involved in the negotiations.
Responding to a question on the prospects of LUKOIL's activities in the Kurdish autonomy in Iraq, Alekperov said projects in the Kurdish autonomy have not yet been considered.
The West Qurna-2 field is located in the province of Basra in the south. The agreement on the field's development was signed between Iraq and LUKOIL on March 22, 2012.
According to BP, Iraq's proven oil reserves by the end of 2012 amounted to 143.1 billion barrels bringing the country to third place in OPEC after Saudi Arabia and Iran.
Iraq's main oil fields are located in the south. These are Rumeila, Zubair, Nahr Umr, Majnoon and West Qurna with 80 per cent of the country's oil produced being exported.