The UAE’s Dana Gas PJSC, the largest private sector natural gas company in the region, has given an update on Monday’s termination notice issued by Pearl Petroleum Co. Ltd, citing “performance issues” as the reason behind ending its contract with EPC firm Enerflex, which was working on the KM 250 gas plant project in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

On Monday, Pearl announced that it has formally issued a notice of termination to Enerflex, following numerous performance issues which had arisen during the execution of the contract works.

According to an ADX filing, the Sharjah-based Dana Gas stated the ongoing impact of these “performance issues” materially affected Enerflex’s ability to meet its contractual obligations, “leading to unacceptable delays and hindering the progress and timely completion of the Khor Mor gas expansion project (KM250)”, forcing Pearl to “intervene directly to ensure the timely and successful completion of the project.”

Founded in 2009 with joint operators Dana Gas and Crescent Petroleum, Pearl’s shareholders include the OMV of Austria and MOL of Hungary, two major European energy companies, each with a 10% stake, along with RWEST of Germany, which also acquired a 10% share in the company in 2015.

Pearl will now assume direct control over the remaining phases of the project, with the company also reserving all rights under the contract, including potential claims for damages, Dana Gas stated.

(Writing by Bindu Rai, editing by Seban Scaria)

bindu.rai@lseg.com