Iraqi Oil Ministry Optimistic About Restarting Kurdistan Oil Exports
ERBIL — The Finance Committee of the Iraqi Council of Representatives met with officials from the Iraqi Oil Ministry, and Iraqi officials have expressed optimism about agreements between the Iraqi federal government and the Kurdistan Region regarding the resumption of oil exports to Turkey, which have been halted for over a year.
On Sunday, the Finance Committee of the Iraqi Parliament met with the Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of Oil for Extraction Affairs, the Director General of the Oil Marketing Company (SOMO), the Director General of the Economic Department, and the Director of the Legal Department. They discussed the importance of amending the budget for oil exports and addressing production costs.
According to a statement from the Iraqi Parliament, the Deputy Oil Minister discussed the issue of oil exports between the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government, as well as the mechanisms for determining operational and production costs. He stressed the need to reach an agreement that serves the public interest.
The head of the Finance Committee then emphasized the importance of the meeting for any changes in oil prices and the need to amend the clause on oil exports in the budget, taking into account the mechanisms of oil extraction in different fields.
The Finance Committee also raised several questions about production costs, increasing payments, and how to amend the budget to ensure fairness in the distribution of wealth.
On November 26, Shakhawan Abdullah, Deputy Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament, stated that the cost of oil production in the Kurdistan Region had been amended and agreed upon between Baghdad and Erbil.
"We have received the amended draft, and after the vote in Parliament, there will be no obstacles," Abdullah explained.
"So far, no political party has raised concerns about the cost of oil production, because the prime minister said at the meeting of the state coalition: 'It was very important for them to pass the project. It will benefit Iraq,'" he added.
Oil exports from the Kurdistan Region through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline have been halted since March 2023, following a ruling by a Paris-based arbitration court in favor of Baghdad against Ankara. The court ruled that Ankara had breached a 1973 pipeline agreement by allowing Erbil to begin independent oil exports in 2014.
Earlier this month, the Kurdistan Region's Natural Resources Minister stated that the halt in oil exports had cost both Iraq and the Region nearly $21 billion.
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