PM Barzani calls for swift resumption of Kurdistan Region oil export
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Region’s halted oil export, which has resulted in billions of dollars in loss, has to be resumed as soon as possible, Prime Minister Barzani said on Sunday.
The premier received Iraqi Minister of Oil and Deputy Prime Minister Hayyan Abdul Ghani and his accompanying delegation, consisting of director generals and managers at the state oil marketing company known as SOMO, in Erbil on Sunday.
Having been halted since late March, the stoppage of oil export from the Kurdistan Region through Tureky’s Ceyhan port has resulted in “billions of dollars” loss in the public treasury, Barzani told the delegation, stressing the need for a swift resumption, per a statement released by the Kurdish leader’s office.
Today, I had a productive exchange with the DPM & Federal Minister of Oil @HAbdalghanii.
— Masrour Barzani (@masrourbarzani) November 12, 2023
Restarting exports will benefit all of Iraq, including the Kurdistan Region.
We are ready to make it happen, in a way that aligns with the Constitution and benefits all the Iraqi peoples. pic.twitter.com/6pLBk1Z59a
Erbil is “willing to resume the export in line with the shared understanding towards fulfilling the technical and financial needs and honoring the constitution, contracts, constitutional rights,” the premier told the attendees.
Barzani also called for the payment of operation and transport fees, as stipulated in the Iraqi budget law.
Minister Abdul Ghani expressed the Iraqi federal government’s stance on the resumption of oil exports by paving the way to remove impediments.
The delegations, according to the statement, agreed to continue the discussions on the “technical, financial and legal details” in order to create a joint understanding to resume the export as soon as possible, per the statement.
However, Iraq has officially requested Turkey to allow the resumption of oil and Ankara has concluded what it dubbed as maintenance work on the pipeline, the oil flow has not yet resumed since March 25 this year.
The difference in oil extraction cost per barrel in the Iraqi and Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) contracts with international oil companies is one of the outstanding issues between Erbil and Baghdad.
Per the budget law, the extraction cost per barrel is set at $6 while the regional governments pay a much higher price.
“The price set in the budget does not fit with the nature of our contracts,” Minister Kamal Mohammed told reporters early Sunday, hoping the delegation to reach an agreement in the coming days.
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.
