KRG urges restart of Kurdistan oil exports ‘as soon as possible'
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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) on Wednesday urged the resumption of the Region's oil exports to the international markets in the nearest future, tasking its concerned ministry to continue cooperating with Baghdad in this regard.
The Kurdish Council of Ministers held its weekly meeting on Wednesday, discussing a range of issues, including oil. It 'emphasized that the Region requests to resume oil exports as soon as possible, which is in the interest of all parties,' according to a statement.
It added that the two-year suspension has 'resulted in several billion dollars in losses to Iraq's general revenue.'
Kamal Mohammed, the Kurdistan Region's acting natural resources minister, told Rudaw on Monday that oil exports from the Region will resume next month. However, he emphasized that Turkey's consent is required for the oil to be transferred through its territory. On the same day, the Iraqi oil minister made similar comments, confirming that Kurdish oil exports would restart next week.
However, Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar stated on Wednesday that his country has received 'nothing yet' from the Iraqi side regarding the resumption, when asked about the timeline, according to Reuters.
In early February, the Iraqi legislature passed an amendment to the federal budget law, increasing compensation to international oil companies (IOCs) operating in the Kurdistan Region. This amendment is seen as key for the resumption of Kurdish oil exports.
The amendment was published in the Official Gazette on Tuesday.
The KRG said it had instructed its natural resources ministry 'to continue cooperation and coordination with the Federal Oil Ministry regarding the procedures and mechanisms for resuming the Region's oil exports, especially now that the law has entered into force, there are no legal obstacles to the process, and the law has clearly defined the roadmap for the matter.'
Oil exports from the Kurdistan Region via the Iraq-Turkey pipeline were suspended in March 2023 following a ruling by a Paris-based arbitration court, which sided with Baghdad. The court determined that Ankara violated a 1973 pipeline agreement by permitting Erbil to export oil independently starting in 2014.
Before the suspension, Erbil was exporting approximately 400,000 barrels of oil per day via the Iraq-Turkey pipeline, in addition to around 75,000 barrels of oil from Kirkuk.
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