据油气新闻网6月19日报道，伊拉克邀请外国公司竞标勘探和开发11个新区块的天然气储量的合同，因为这个欧佩克成员国正寻求为发电站生产急需的天然气，并削减对该国预算构成压力的进口。

伊拉克石油部在一份声明中表示，八个区块位于安巴尔省西部，一个位于北部城市摩苏尔，另外两个位于省边界，其中一个位于安巴尔地区与摩苏尔之间，另一个位于伊拉克南部城市纳贾。

伊拉克石油部表示，已经结束了启动第六轮天然气区块招标的准备工作，但没有确定招标日期。

欧佩克中仅次于沙特的第二大天然气生产国伊拉克，由于缺乏将天然气加工成燃料的设施，只能使用进口的电力发电，该国在其油田开采的大部分天然气与原油一起开采。

伊拉克一直受到外界的压力，要求其减少对进口天然气的依赖。

郝芬 译自 油气新闻网

原文如下：

Iraq invites foreign bids for 11 gas blocks in new area

Iraq invited foreign companies to bid for contracts to explore and develop natural gas reserves in 11 new blocks as the Opec member seeks to produce much-needed natural gas for power stations and cut imports that weigh on the country's budget.

Eight blocks are located in western Anbar province, one in the northern city of Mosul and two others are located along province borders, including one between Anbar region with Mosul and another with Iraq's southern city of Naja, the oil ministry said in a statement.

Iraq's oil ministry has ended preparation to launch a sixth bidding round to auction off the gas blocks, the ministry said, without setting a date for the bidding process.

Iraq, Opec’s second-largest producer after Saudi Arabia, flares much of its own gas, extracted alongside crude oil at its fields, because it lacks the facilities to process it into fuel and instead uses its neighbor's power imports to generate electricity.

Baghdad has been under pressure from the biggest economics to reduce its reliance on gas imports from its neighbor.