Iraqis to repair wells after Westerners hesitate

An Iraqi state-owned company has been given the job of repairing oil wells that sit on large, lucrative oil reserves in the country’s south a decision likely to mean additional months of pumping delays for an industry already suffering from sabotage and lost revenues.

The decision by US officials came after US and other Western companies including giant oilfield services firm KBR Oil baulked at doing the work without strong legal protections, or indemnifications, guaranteeing they would not be blamed if things went wrong.