KRG to discuss latest Baghdad, Erbil mediation

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is set to convene on Wednesday in Erbil to discuss the latest mediation between the federal and regional governments.

The ministers will also discuss Baghdad’s 500 billion Iraqi dinars (over $384 million) allowance to the Kurdistan Region, Kurdistan 24 has learned.

Officials from the Region have previously visited the Iraqi capital to discuss the oil and gas draft, in which Erbil seeks to preserve its constitutional rights with regard to the management of natural resources.

The federal and KRG officials recently agreed to form a number of committees in order to follow up on the work of the bill.

In the absence of an oil and gas law, Iraq still relies on Ba’athist-era legislation in order to regulate the sector.

Per a deal signed in April between Erbil and Baghdad, the two governments would jointly manage the energy dossier, which has been a source of tension for over a decade.

Following the halt of its export via the Turkish Ceyhan port, Erbil has been transferring more than 90,000 barrels of oil to the Iraqi government which uses the crude to meet domestic needs.

Prior to the stoppage, the Kurdistan Region was exporting over 400,000 barrels of oil per day through a pipeline to Turkey’s Ceyhan port.

Turkish and Iraqi officials have been in discussion regarding the resumption of the Kurdistan Region’s oil export, whose halt had resulted in a more than $3 billion loss, according to Kurdish officials.