The King of Norway recently conferred on Iraqi-Norwegian geologist Farouk al-Kasim the decoration of Knight First Class, for his services to the Norwegian oil industry. From 1972 to 1990, Kasim was the head of the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD). He is now retired, but he serves in a government agency that provides petroleum-related technical and advisory assistance to third world countries – including Lebanon– with a view to help them prepare oil laws and train their nationals to work in the oil sector. On the occasion, NPD Director-General Bente Nyland said, “We are happy and proud in the NPD, [because] Farouk was a highly respected director for many years. This is a highly prestigious honor." In 2006, Kasim was chosen along with two other Iraqi experts to draft the ill-fated Iraqi oil law, which, five years after its preparation, has yet to be passed. The Iraqi-Norwegian oil expert and his two colleagues have since disavowed the draft law, after it was turned into a bargaining chip between Iraqi politicians, who do not seem to appreciate the importance of this vital sector of the Iraqi economy, and the loss suffered by the country as a result of the delay in passing this legislation. Kasim, a graduate of Imperial College London who hails from Basra, chose to emigrate from Iraq and settle with his Norwegian wife in her home country in 1968. He was employed by the Iraqi Oil Company, but had to leave his home country to treat his son. Desperate for petroleum experts, Norway's Ministry of Industry immediately hired him, at a time when international companies had begun exploring the North Sea for oil, but without making any significant discoveries after five years of exploration. At the time, there were only three experts and two technicians at the NPD, although the latter had enormous responsibilities to cope with, including planning and proposing policies for the development of the oil industry in the Norwegian section of the North Sea, not to mention supervising the work of international oil companies contracted by the Norwegian government. Kasim was appointed on the same day as part of the Norwegian oil team as a consultant, to analyze the results of North Sea exploration. Farouk al-Kasim thus came to be world renowned. On August 29, 2009, the Financial Times ran an extensive article about him entitled: The Iraqi Who Saved Norway from Oil. Kasim saved Norway from oil in the sense that he, and his team, sought to help Norway avoid the so-called ‘Dutch disease', where oil revenues lead to inflation (this was called the ‘Dutch disease' after the discovery of natural gas in the Netherlands and the negative effects this had on the economy, effects such as inflation and corruption.) Kasim, after examining exploration results, was convinced that there were significant hydrocarbon reserves in Norway. But the officials were not convinced at first, while the laws in place in the country were ill-suited for managing future oil revenues. Nevertheless, his reports were well received by his colleagues at work. After a thorough review of the North Sea exploration data, he submitted a report and his remarks to the officials. In this regard, the Financial Times article mentioned that Kasim's “was a lonely, contrarian voice. After examining exploration results, he wrote a report that warned Norway was sleeping, that even though no one had found oil yet, it was only a question of time. And time was short: the country's leaders needed to prepare Norway to become an oil nation (that is, preparing socially and economically for coping with oil wealth), but they were doing nothing." Kasim told the paper, “I was a constant reminder that they were doing everything wrong." Luck was once again on Kasim's side, this time spectacularly so, giving him the credibility he needed in his work. The majority of wells drilled by international companies in the beginning turned out dry, and oil companies were starting to stop their exploration efforts. In the summer of 1969, Phillips Petroleum asked to be relieved of the final exploration well remaining in its contract with the government. But the government's oil office refused this request, and decided that if Phillips did not drill the well, it would have to pay a fee equal to the cost of drilling. In light of this decision, Phillips Petroleum concluded that it would be cheaper to drill. As a result of drilling that last well, the Ekofisk was discovered, one of the world's largest offshore oil basins. Norway thus turned into a major oil producing country, in light of this and other many discoveries. Oil companies also rushed to obtain concessions to operate in the Norwegian section of the North Sea. Farouk al-Kasim was involved in this important breakthrough for the Norwegian oil sector, as director of the NPD, the right hand of the Ministry of Oil, and the body that the latter relied upon to develop the sector. Since that time, the Norwegian oil output has been in the range of 2 to 3 million barrels per day. But more importantly, Norway managed to steer clear of the ‘Dutch disease'. Instead of inflation and corruption, the Nordic nation managed to become a model to be followed in exploiting oil wealth for development, and launching local engineering and construction services to support the oil sector with local expertise. The success of Farouk al-Kassim in his work for which he came to be honored by the King of Norway, is the result of his good morals, modesty, professionalism and cordial relations with his colleagues, in addition to his tireless work to help the younger generation and train them to enter the oil industry. * Mr. Khadduri is a consultant for MEES Oil & Gas (MeesEnergy)
