Iraq agrees to supply Jordan with 10,000 bpd of oil from Kirkuk

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Iraqi government has agreed to supply Jordan with 10,000 barrels of oil per day from Kirkuk, a document from Iraq’s Council of Ministers said on Saturday.

Iraq will supply Jordan with the oil at a price equivalent to Brent Crude, minus transportation costs and other specifications, the document noted.

Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi confirmed the transfer of Kirkuk oil in a joint statement with his Jordanian counterpart Omar Razzaz.

The two leaders attended a ceremony at the Iraq-Jordan border on Saturday for the launch of a joint industrial zone.

Aside from the transfer of oil, both sides agreed that Jordan would provide Iraq with electricity and exempt Baghdad of 75 percent of taxes on imports through Jordan’s Aqaba port.

According to Abdul-Mahdi, the industrial zone between the two countries would provide “stability and employment opportunities.”

“We are determined to proceed with projects that serve the two countries,” the Iraqi prime minister said in the joint statement.

Meanwhile, Razaz said both countries have enjoyed a good relationship for over two decades and pledged Jordan’s support to the people of Iraq.

“Our presence here today is a confirmation of Iraq’s successes in overcoming political and economic crises and fighting terrorism,” he said in the statement.

The development comes following a recent visit by Jordan’s Energy Minister Hala Zawati to Iraq to discuss ways to boost bilateral cooperation in the oil, gas, and energy sector.

Jordan has also extended its desire to boost ties with the autonomous Kurdistan Region. In late January, King Abdullah II of Jordan himself invited the President of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), Masoud Barzani, to Amman.

The two men “reviewed Iraqi-Jordanian ties,” and ways to improve “cooperation between Jordan and the Kurdistan Region in various fields,” an official statement on Jordan News Agency said.