Kurdistan exported just under 40 million barrels of oil in late 2018: Audit firm

The autonomous Kurdistan Region exported a total of 39,399,182 barrels of oil abroad in the final three months of 2018, an audit firm reported on Thursday.

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The autonomous Kurdistan Region exported a total of 39,399,182 barrels of oil abroad in the final three months of 2018, an audit firm reported on Thursday.

The Regional Council for Oil and Gas Affairs published the new data on the Kurdistan Region’s oil exports, consumption, and revenues, covering the period from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, after a review of the sector by the international “Big 4” audit and consulting firm, Deloitte.

According to the data, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) on average exported 13,133,060 million per month and 437,768 barrels per day (bpd) to the Ceyhan port in Turkey.

The total gross value of crude oil and condensate sold (piped exports and local sales) was $2,149,809,755 and the total net cash balance received by the KRG for the period's sales and related activities was $1,096,478,527.

Oil and gas shares and distribution have been the subject of a longstanding dispute between the KRG and the federal government of Iraq since 2003.

Following the formation of the new Iraqi federal government in Oct. 2018, both Erbil and Baghdad agreed on the 2019 national budget bill, which requires the Iraqi government to deliver the salaries of KRG employees along with additional financial compensation as the KRG hands over the export of 250,000 bpd to the Iraqi oil marketing company – SOMO.

Since the beginning of this year, the Iraqi federal government headed by Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi has delivered the salaries of the KRG employees on a monthly basis, but the KRG has yet to deliver the prescribed amount of oil to Baghdad as indicated in the Iraqi national budget bill.

Over the past few weeks, many Iraqi lawmakers have complained in parliament about the delayed KRG oil transfers, with some questioning the silence of the government's leadership on the issue.

Kurdish members of the parliament in Baghdad previously told Kurdistan 24 that the new KRG cabinet, which is expected to be formed in June, will engage in serious dialogue with the federal government to resolve the oil and gas disputes. 

Editing by John J. Catherine