Experts dispute Iraq costs in budget

[Nottingham]

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/business/2169552

Experts dispute Iraq costs in budget
Fuel estimates called too pricey
By DAVID IVANOVICH
Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- The U.S.-controlled government in Baghdad appears to be overestimating the cost of purchasing fuel for Iraq, the Congressional Research Service told lawmakers.

The Coalition Provisional Government, which is importing gasoline, cooking oil and other refined products into oil-rich Iraq to meet domestic needs, has requested $900.6 million for 2004 to purchase fuels.

Last week, key Democratic lawmakers accused Houston-based Halliburton Co. subsidiary KBR, formerly known as Kellogg Brown & Root, of overcharging to truck fuel from Kuwait into Baghdad. KBR is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' prime contractor responsible for repairing the oil sector in Iraq.

Energy policy experts at the Congressional Research Service examined the request and calculated the provisional authority could obtain the fuel for between $652 million and $704 million.

more...

"If the request is only for commodity fuel purchase at spot prices, it would seem" that the provisional government is seeking "substantially more money than is called for by current fuel prices in the Persian Gulf trading area," the energy policy experts noted in a report to the Senate Energy Committee ...QUOTE of the day


:bounce: Iraq Oil is just More Expensive for some reason