Sunday, July 24, 2011
Publications: Contractor Support Of USCENTCOM AOR, 3rd Quarter FY 2011
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Publications: Journal Of International Peace Operations, July-August 2011
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Jobs: PSD Team Leaders, Iraq
I suspect this might have something to do with oil and gas stuff in Iraq. If it is located near Basrah, there are tons of oil facilities there. Who knows, and perhaps a representative from G4S can come up and add a little more detail for the readership?
Also, it looks like this job ad is structured more towards European contractors. But that should not stop you if you are an American or other looking for work, and I still suggest sending a resume for this job if you are interested. I am not the POC or recruiter for this job, and please follow the link below if you would like to apply. Good luck. –Matt
Job Reference: G4S/TP/51079/2
Number of Positions: 1
Job Category: Security / Protective Services
Contract Type: Full Time
Salary: $105,000 – $105,000
Location: Basra
G4S Region: UK, Ireland and Africa
G4S Business: G4S – IES
Closing Date: 01/07/2011
Job Introduction:
Here at G4S, it’s hard to comprehend what a massive scale we work on. We’re the world’s leading name in security solutions in the private sector – and the work we do helps to ensure the safety and welfare of millions of people in more than 110 countries worldwide.
At G4S Risk Management, we provide risk mitigation, secure support and integrated solutions for a range of clients operating in complex or sensitive environments, including both Iraq and Afghanistan. Our core business is devising and implementing effective solutions to our clients’ complex security issues, enabling them to work more securely and confidently, even in the most hazardous situations.
Friday, June 17, 2011
Iraq: In Rebuilding Iraq’s Oil Industry, US Subcontractors Hold Sway
“The strategic interest of the United States is in new oil supplies arriving on the world market, to lower prices,” Mr. Kuzyaev said.
“It is not important that we did not take part in the coalition,” he said, referring to the military operations in Iraq. “For America, the important thing is open access to reserves. And that is what is happening in Iraq.”
This is an area of Iraq reconstruction that everyone is watching. Because every drop of oil that can be extracted out of the ground in Iraq, will only help to feed a very hungry global oil market.
The article below also made a key point which is worth mentioning again. US companies will definitely play a crucial part in building and maintaining oil infrastructure and drilling in Iraq. Although it would have been nice for the US and it’s coalition partners to have even more of a share of oil contracts there, but politically speaking, it just wasn’t in the cards.
Probably the biggest point to mention here is how much money American companies stand to make with their oil services contracts:
“Iraq is a huge opportunity for contractors,” Alex Munton, a Middle East analyst for Wood Mackenzie, a research and consulting firm based in Edinburgh, said by telephone.
Mr. Munton estimated that about half of the $150 billion the international majors are expected to invest at Iraqi oil fields over the next decade would go to drilling subcontractors — most of it to the big four operators, which all have ties to the Texas oil industry.
And with that kind of money and company presence in Iraq, security will be very important in these post war years. Companies like Edinburgh International are already in the mix for energy security work in Iraq, and I expect to see more of that. –Matt
In Rebuilding Iraq’s Oil Industry, U.S. Subcontractors Hold Sway
By ANDREW E. KRAMER
June 16, 2011
When Iraq auctioned rights to rebuild and expand its oil industry two years ago, the Russian company Lukoil won a hefty portion — a field holding about 10 percent of Iraq’s known oil reserves.
It seemed a geopolitical victory for Lukoil. And because only one of the 11 fields that the Iraqis auctioned off went to an American oil company — Exxon Mobil — it also seemed as if few petroleum benefits would flow to the country that took the lead role in the war, the United States.
The auction’s outcome helped defuse criticism in the Arab world that the United States had invaded Iraq for its oil. “No one, even the United States, can steal the oil,” the Iraqi government spokesman, Ali al-Dabbagh, said at the time.
But American companies can, apparently, drill for the oil.
In fact, American drilling companies stand to make tens of billions of dollars from the new petroleum activity in Iraq long before any of the oil producers start seeing any returns on their investments.
Lukoil and many of the other international oil companies that won fields in the auction are now subcontracting mostly with the four largely American oil services companies that are global leaders in their field: Halliburton, Baker Hughes, Weatherford International and Schlumberger. Those four have won the largest portion of the subcontracts to drill for oil, build wells and refurbish old equipment.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Industry Talk: Saudi Arabia To Raise A Multi-Billion Dollar, 35,000 Member ‘Facilities Security Force’ With US Help
In October 2008, Ford Fraker, then the U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia, called the facilities security force program “probably the single biggest initiative for the U.S.-Saudi relationship” and said the value of contracts associated with the program could reach tens of billions of dollars…..
The special security force is expected to grow to at least 35,000 members, trained and equipped by U.S. personnel as part of a multiagency effort that includes staff from the Justice Department, Energy Department and Pentagon. It is overseen by the U.S. Central Command.
The force’s main mission is to protect vital oil infrastructure, but its scope is wider. A formerly secret State Department cable released by the WikiLeaks website described the mission as protecting “Saudi energy production facilities, desalination plants and future civil nuclear reactors.”
Oh boy. Now everyone was freaking out about the whole R2 contract in the UAE for an 800 man battalion, but a 35,000 man ‘facilities security force’ is way bigger and more valuable. I will say that the Vinnell Arabia contract is a sizable and long term contract and has been a source of employment for the industry for awhile, but this new force could take contracts there to a whole new level.
And that quote up top by U.S. ambassador Ford Fraker is quite significant. He said ‘tens of billions of dollars’ folks! Now you can see exactly what Erik Prince was thinking about when he wanted to create a mega training facility in the desert of the UAE. A 35,000 man force requires a ton of training to start up and maintain over the years, and training providers will be a premium in that part of the world.
It also makes sense why the US is not freaking out about Prince and his plans in the UAE. For a force this large in Saudi Arabia, and with all the competition for trainers and manpower throughout the world in places like Iraq and Afghanistan, you can see that every competent and capable training facility out there will be very popular. Especially facilities that are close, cost effective, and deliver a quality service. Of course the Saudis will also build local facilities for training and housing these forces. But for the really specialized stuff that I am sure R2 will offer, they could easily cater to forces like this.
Let’s not forget about what the national interest is for the US and it’s allies–keep the oil flowing. Saudi Arabia is a key part of our energy policy, and their oil and refinery capability is vital to the US economy. Any threat to that oil, be it from terrorists, internal uprising or Iran, is a threat to US national security. That is the relationship we have right now, and we will continue to have for awhile.
I also think that we cannot afford to see Saudi Arabia collapse via uprisings. Libya or Egypt collapsing was one thing, but losing Saudi Arabia to political collapse would be unacceptable. And in the case of this massive facilities security force, we either train their forces to stand the line, or it could potentially be US troops standing that line if Saudi Arabia were to explode. Contracts like Vinnell Arabia or the future contracts for this current force, are insurance for the west pure and simple. –Matt
……The forging of closer U.S.-Saudi military ties is so sensitive, particularly in Saudi Arabia, that the Pentagon and the State Department declined requests for on-the-record comment and U.S. officials rejected a request for an interview with the two-star Army general, Robert G. Catalanotti, who manages the project to build a “facilities security force” to protect the Saudis’ network of oil installations and other critical infrastructure. The Saudi Embassy in Washington did not respond to two written requests for comment. –Understanding Saudi Stability and Instability: A Very Different Nation, By Anthony H. Cordesman, Feb 26, 2011
—————————————————————
U.S. quietly expanding defense ties with Saudis
By Robert Burns
Thursday May 19, 2011
WASHINGTON — Despite their deepening political divide, the United States and Saudi Arabia are quietly expanding defense ties on a vast scale, led by a little-known project to develop an elite force to protect the kingdom’s oil riches and future nuclear sites.
The U.S. also is in discussions with Saudi Arabia to create an air and missile defense system with far greater capability against the regional rival the Saudis fear most, Iran. And it is with Iran mainly in mind that the Saudis are pressing ahead with a historic $60 billion arms deal that will provide dozens of new U.S.-built F-15 combat aircraft likely to ensure Saudi air superiority over Iran for years.
Together these moves amount to a historic expansion of a 66-year-old relationship that is built on America’s oil appetite, sustained by Saudi reliance on U.S. military reach and deepened by a shared worry about the threat of al-Qaida and the ambitions of Iran.