Barzani says Russia's Gazprom Neft signs new oil deal

The deals may increase friction between KRG and Baghdad, which insists that only it has the authority to grant oil contacts and control crude exports in the country. "We are satisfied with Gazprom Neft's work in the region. New agreements have been reached with this Russian company in recent days," Masoud Barzani was quoted as saying by news agency Interfax, which didn't report any details. A spokesman for Gazprom Neft, the oil arm of world's top oil company, Gazprom, declined to comment. Gazprom Neft acquired interests in two Kurdistan blocks last August. That followed moves by international oil firms to develop fields in the autonomous region that angered the central Iraqi government in Baghdad. The Russian company also has a contract for the Badra oilfield, controlled by the government. Industry insiders have said that Kurdistan offers more lucrative conditions - under production sharing agreements - than the central government.