Iraq temporarily self-sufficient in fuel for first time since fall of Saddam

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraq’s Ministry of Oil on Sunday announced the country was temporarily self-sufficient in kerosene oil for the first time since the fall of the former regime 15 years ago.

In a statement posted on its website, the Ministry said, “For the first time since 2003, the ministry has decided to delay the import of kerosene oil for May 2018, as engineering teams succeeded in achieving an increase in production for the month of April.”

The rate of production for kerosene, also called paraffin oil, increased in March and exceeded the average domestic consumption for the last two months. Kerosene is widely used in Iraq as cooking, heating, and lighting fuel.

Iraqi Oil Minister, Jabar Al-Luaibi, stressed that the increased production would help save money currently spent on importing the oil byproduct, predominantly from neighboring Iran.

Iraq’s refineries have been the target of attacks by armed groups, notably since the rise of the Islamic State (IS) in 2014, affecting production capacities.

Luaibi explained that the Ministry is hoping to achieve full self-sufficiency for kerosene and reduce the amount of petroleum product imports by more than 50 percent, depending on consumption determined by the Ministry of Electricity.

Last month, the oil minister claimed Iraq was working to wean off its oil-import dependency by producing more oil products by processing natural gas liquids and adding more production units at refineries in the central and southern parts of the country. 

Earlier in April, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said the country would follow a five-year economic development plan to diversify its oil-reliant economy.

Following Abadi’s “final victory” announcement over IS last December, the government said its focus was now on rebuilding its economy, calling on foreign investments for major projects. Iraq’s economy is a top issue for the upcoming May 12 parliamentary elections.