Heritage Oil has completed testing on the Miran West-1 well drilled earlier this year and has encountered a structure holding between 2.3 billion and 4.2 billion barrels.

Commenting on the find, Dr Ashti Hawrami, the minister of natural resources of the Kurdistan Regional Government, said that it was an excellent development for the region and added that he hopes to begin exporting oil later this year.

"This will mean that the Miran field in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq will make a further contribution to Iraq’s oil revenue to be shared by all peoples of Iraq," he said.

As part of its ongoing commitment to corporate social responsibility, Heritage has developed a robust support system to benefit the communities in which it has operations.

The company is particularly mindful of the need to integrate within communities driven by complex social, political and economic forces.

The KRG encourages foreign companies to promote the social, educational and cultural development of its people, which include Chaldeans, Assyrians, Turkmen, Yazidis, Kurds and other ethnic groups.

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