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Aberdeen-based Wood Group has won a contract to deliver project management and engineering services for PetroChina at the West Qurna-1 oil field in southern Iraq, according to a statement from the company.

Under the terms of the contract, Wood will manage engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) projects at the field. 

Located approximately 50 kilometres northwest of Basra, West Qurna-1 holds more than 20 billion barrels of recoverable reserves.

Ellis Renforth, Wood’s president of operations for the Europe, Africa and Middle East region, said: “This contract award deepens our decade-long partnership at West Qurna-1 and reflects the continued trust placed in Wood to deliver complex energy solutions in Iraq. 

“We’re proud to combine our global expertise with a strong local workforce to help support Iraq’s energy ambitions.”

The contract will be delivered by nearly 200 Wood employees based in Iraq and the UAE, the company said.

On 17 November, in a vote, 88% of Wood Group’s shareholders backed the company’s takeover by Dubai-based Sidara.

The vote came after months of delay, while Wood struggled to agree its accounts with its auditor.

The company’s accounts were eventually published on 30 October, showing a pre-tax loss of more than £2bn and evidence that the auditor was still not satisfied with the figures going back several years.

Wood Group accepted a $292m conditional takeover bid from Sidara in August.

As of February, Wood Group employed 35,000 people across about 60 countries, many in consulting and engineering roles.

In the Middle East, the company has project contracts in Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, where it has opened its third office in Sharjah.