Iraq and Kurdistan Region Finalize Mechanism to Resume Oil Exports

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – The Iraqi Ministry of Oil announced on Saturday that all necessary measures to resume oil exports from the Kurdistan Region through Turkey’s Ceyhan port have been completed. The ministry called on the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to transfer the required oil volumes to Baghdad per federal budget laws.

According to the statement, the resumption of oil exports will align with the production levels set by OPEC and follow the framework outlined in Iraq’s federal budget. The ministry also urged the KRG to officially hand over its oil production to the State Organization for Marketing of Oil (SOMO).

On Tuesday, Iraqi Oil Minister Hayyan Abdul Ghani stated that a senior-level delegation from his ministry, including senior officials overseeing foreign operations, legal affairs, and oil marketing, visited Erbil to discuss the technical and legal framework for restarting Kurdistan’s oil exports via Turkey.

Abdul Ghani also noted that an agreement had been reached between the Iraqi delegation and KRG Acting Minister of Natural Resources Kamal Mohammed to continue discussions on the issue. On Monday, the Iraqi delegation arrived in Erbil to negotiate the restart of oil exports, following a request from the KRG.

Omed Sabah, Head of the KRG Council of Ministers’ Office, confirmed that the KRG had requested a special meeting to discuss the mechanisms for resuming oil exports. He emphasized that the meeting aimed to resolve outstanding issues and streamline the export process in coordination with Baghdad.

Oil exports from the Kurdistan Region were halted in March 2023 after an international arbitration ruling between Iraq and Turkey led Ankara to suspend the flow of Kurdish crude through the Ceyhan pipeline. Since then, Baghdad and Erbil have been negotiating the terms for resuming exports, with the Iraqi government insisting on greater control over Kurdistan’s oil revenues.