Kuwait Energy announced the signing of Iraq’s Block 9 Export Oil Sales Agreement with the State Oil Marketing Company (SOMO), an Iraqi national company responsible for marketing nation’s oil, Kuwait News Agency informed.

Kuwait Energy’s statement added that the agreement puts in place the mechanism by which Kuwait Energy will be paid for services in Block 9 and will enable allocation of crude cargoes to be sold in compensation for the services the consortium is rendering.

Kuwait Energy is expected to be allocated its first cargo of oil entitlement for Kuwait Energy’s working interest share from Faihaa-1 well covering the production of oil from October 2015 to March 2016, reported Oil Voice.

In 2013, Kuwait Energy was awarded the Block 9 Exploration, Development & Production Service Contract (EDPSC) in southern Iraq as operator and currently holds a 60% participating interest.

First exploration well in Block 9 was spud in March 2014 which led to significant oil discoveries in September and December of the same year. Oil production commenced from the Block in October 2015, only a year after the first discovery was made, reported World Oil.

Kuwait Energy’s MENA portfolio consists of 10 exploration, development and production assets across Egypt, Iraq, Yemen and Oman of which it operates 7 assets.