Exxon Deal Clearly Positive For Kurdish Oil - Gulf Keystone

Exxon Mobil Corp.'s (XOM) controversial deal to explore for oil in Iraq's Kurdish region will undoubtedly change the politics of the industry in a positive way, John Gerstenlauer, chief operating officer for Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd. (GKP.LN), said Thursday.

"There is no way that a player the size of Exxon can do what they have done and not change the dynamics," Gerstenlauer said at the Oil Council conference in London. "At the end of the day, it has to be positive for Kurdistan."

Exxon Mobil last week became the first of the major international oil companies to enter Iraqi Kurdistan. The move has prompted threats from the Baghdad government that the U.S. company could lose its licenses in southern Iraq if proceeds with the deal.

-By James Herron, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]