NEW YORK: Privately held Kuwait Energy Co. is on track to go public and quintuple its oil production from its fields around the world by the end of next year, Chief Executive Sara Akbar told Reuters in an interview.
Akbar, known in some energy circles for her role fighting well fires after the first Gulf War, said that she expects KEC to lift output to 50,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day from about 10,000 bpd at the end of 2008.
The company, formed in August 2005, expects to list within the same time frame. “We’re looking at London and Kuwait exchanges. A dual listing is an option,” said Akbar, who bills herself as one of just a handful of Arab female CEOs in the Middle East.
Akbar said KEC, which posted net profits of $30 million in 2008 from $18 million 2007, would likely shun US exchanges because of onerous US reporting requirements. “Why would you want to subject any company to excessive regulation,” she said.
The company’s strategy is focused on development of smaller fields, especially in the Middle East, where it can use its regional expertise and where many fields needing enhanced recovery methods are overlooked by large state-run firms.
“A lot of fields are really aging and they don’t have time for the attention needed,” Akbar said.
On Thursday, state-run Kuwait Oil Co invited interest from contractors for services to enhance oil recovery, part of the country’s plans to boost output potential.
KEC has projects in Oman, Yemen, Egypt, Russia, Ukraine, Latvia, Pakistan and Cambodia.
In 2007, KEC signed a memorandum of understanding to develop several projects in Iraq, including developing the small Siba gas field.
Last week, Iraq’s oil ministry removed the Siba gas field from the list of fields to be offered in a second bidding round.
