The Legal Dimensions of Oil and Gas in Iraq: Current Reality and Future Prospects

by Rex J. Zedalis

• ISBN13: 9780521766616
• ISBN10: 0521766613
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-09-14
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• More Book Details

Summary

This book is the first and only comprehensive examination of current and future legal principles designed to govern oil and gas activity in Iraq. This study provides a thorough-going review of every conceivable angle on Iraqi oil and gas law, from relevant provisions of the Iraqi Constitution of 2005; to legislative measures comprising the oil and gas framework law, the revenue sharing law, and the laws to reconstitute the Iraq National Oil Company and reorganize the Ministry of Oil; to the Kurdistan Regional Government's 2007 Oil and Gas Law No. (22) and its accompanying Model Production Sharing Contract; and to the apposite rules of international law distilled from both controlling UN resolutions addressing Iraq and more generally applicable principles of international law. This text is essential to the reading collection of every practitioner, business executive, government official, academic, public policy maven, and individual citizen with an interest in the details and controversial aspects of Iraqi energy law.

Author Biography

Rex J. Zedalis is a member of the faculty at the University of Tulsa, College of Law, where he has received numerous awards for his outstanding teaching, including an award in 2004 for the university's most out standing professor. He has also been recognized for his extensive publication record in both U.S. and European international law journals. He has served as Director of the Comparative and International Law Center (CILC) at the University of Tulsa and as a Fellow with, and a former Assistant Director of, the College of Law's National Energy Law Policy Institute. Professor Zedalis has also acted as a consultant to international organizations, foreign governments, and domestic as well as international law firms during his nearly 35-years career.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xv
Prologue	p. xvii
The Contextual Background
Facts Regarding Iraqi Oil and Gas Reserves and Their Legal Status Prior to Self-Governance	p. 3
Introduction	p. 3
Iraqi Oil and Gas Production	p. 9
Main Iraqi Pipelines	p. 12
Iraqi Refineries	p. 17
Legal Status of Iraqi Oil and Gas Reserves Prior to Self-Governance	p. 19
Conclusion	p. 26
The Provisions of the Iraqi Constitution Addressing Oil and Gas Activities: Of the Role of Subcentral Governing Entities, Handling of Revenues, and ôPresentö versus ôFutureö Fields	p. 27
Introduction	p. 27
Structure of the Iraqi Constitution	p. 31
Revenue Sharing: Articles 112 and 121	p. 38
Authority of Subcentral Units to Enter Oil and Gas Development Agreements:An Assessment of the Constitutionality of Efforts by theKRG	p. 41
Constitutional Authority of Subcentral Units and the Matter ofôPresentö versus ôFutureö Fields	p. 46
Conclusion	p. 52
The Complications Associated With Iraqi Legislative Measures
Federal Oil and Gas Framework Law and Subcentral Government Responses	p. 59
Introduction	p. 59
Basics of the Federal Oil and Gas Framework Law	p. 60
Significant Legal Issues	p. 74
The KRG's Oil and Gas Law No. (22) of 2007	p. 79
Problems Associated with Preexisting Oil and Gas Contracts	p. 90
Conclusion	p. 95
A Primer on the Federal Model Exploration and Production Contracts and the Kurdistan Regional Government's Model Production-Sharing Contract	p. 97
Introduction	p. 97
Federal Government Model Exploration and Production Contracts	p. 99
The KRG's Model Form of PSC: The Principal Provisions Subgroup	p. 113
Substance and Nature of the PSC	p. 114
The Host Government's Right of Participation	p. 118
Work Duties Imposed on the Contract Holder	p. 119
Financial Obligations Associated with the Contract	p. 122
The KRG's Model Form of PSC: The Adjectival ProvisionsSubgroup	p. 126
The Making of Decisions	p. 126
Handling of Land and Assets	p. 127
The Matter of Contract Stabilization	p. 130
Important Miscellaneous Adjectival Provisions	p. 131
Conclusion	p. 168
The Federal Oil and Gas Revenue-Sharing Law: Its Many Problems	p. 138
Introduction	p. 138
Context of Iraqi Revenue-Sharing Law	p. 141
Overview of the Revenue-Sharing Law	p. 144
Difficulties Associated with the Collection of Revenues	p. 148
Difficulties Associated with Distribution of Oil and Gas Revenues	p. 159
Conclusion	p. 168
Measures to Reconstitute the Iraq National Oil (INOC) and Reorganize the Ministry of Oil	p. 171
Introduction	p. 171
The Relevant Terms of the Iraqi Constitution	p. 172
The Federal Oil and Gas Framework Approach: Articles 6 and 7, as Well as 5D and 5E	p. 176
Articles 6 and 7	p. 177
Articles 5D and 5E	p. 181
Federal Oil and Gas Framework Approach: Scattered Articles	p. 186
Relevant Insights on the Restructuring of INOC and the Ministry ofOil from the KRG's 2007 Oil and Gas Law	p. 192
Basic Conditions and Current Thinking Associated with Reconstituting INOC and Reorganizing the Ministry of Oil	p. 197
Conclusion	p. 207
Current Issues and Potential Future Problems
The Matter of Creditor Claims: An Examination of United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1790 (18 Dec. 2007) and 1859 (22 Dec. 2008), and Their Predecessors	p. 211
Introduction	p. 211
Primer on the Predecessors of Resolutions 1790 and 1859	p. 213
Security Council Resolutions 1790 (18 Dec. 2007) and 1859 (22 Dec. 2008)	p. 221
Analytical Significance of Protection from Legal Claims	p. 232
Conclusion	p. 241
Central Government Authority to Strike Oil and Gas Development Agreements in the Absence of a Federal Framework Law	p. 244
Introduction	p. 244
The Constitutional Context	p. 249
Evaluating the Article 110 Arguments	p. 251
Article 114's Shared Powers Arguments	p. 256
Article 112: Direct Reference to Oil and Gas	p. 258
Power Carried Over from Saddam-Era Measures	p. 262
Conclusion	p. 269
Distributing Profits in the Absence of a Federal Revenue-Sharing Law	p. 271
Introduction	p. 271
The Solidarity and Diversity Provisions: Articles 1, 3, and 14 of the Constitution	p. 273
Economic and Social Security Provisions: Articles 27, 30, and 34 of the Constitution	p. 275
Oil, Gas, and Natural Resources Provisions: Articles 111,112, and 121 of the Constitution	p. 278
A Constitutional Sharing Obligation for Revenues Collected at the Subcentral Level?	p. 282
Inadequacies of the Relevant Constitutional Provisions	p. 285
Proposed Constitutional Amendments: How They Would Affect Revenue Distribution	p. 288
Other Sources of Law Suggestive of an Obligation to Distribute Revenues	p. 290
Conclusion	p. 293
Changing the Mix: Transition Fails and the Face of Iraq Is Altered	p. 294
Introduction	p. 294
KRG and Central Government Apply Their Own Approaches	p. 298
Kurdistan Regional Government	p. 299
Central Government	p. 303
The Country Splits Apart	p. 305
Kurdistan as a Separate Nation-State	p. 306
Separate State(s) in the Balance of Iraq	p. 311
Conclusion	p. 317
Epilogue	p. 321
Index	p. 327
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