Baghdad proposes to establish a joint oil company with Erbil

Shafaq News / The Iraqi Oil Minister, Ihsan Abduljabbar, presented on Tuesday a proposal to establish a joint oil company to manage the affairs of extracting and exporting oil from Kurdistan Region.

For decades, the Region has been extracting and exporting oil. It is one of the main issues between Baghdad and Erbil.

In a statement, the Iraqi minister said that Baghdad had submitted a proposal to establish an oil company in the Kurdistan Region, to manage the extraction and export operations, to be linked technically and administratively to the presidency of the region and the Federal Oil Ministry.

Abdul-Jabbar explained, "Positive understandings between the central government and the Kurdistan Region regarding the production and export of oil produced in the fields of the latter have been reached", adding, "The ongoing talks between Baghdad and Erbil show new visions and ideas for the region to manage this file".

Baghdad used to pay 453 billion Iraqi dinars (about 380 million dollars) per month in salaries to Kurdistan Region employees, but stopped it at the beginning of this year, due to differences between the two sides.

The region was obliged, according to a previous agreement with the government, to deliver 250 thousand barrels of crude oil per day to SOMO, and hand over the revenues to the Federal Public Treasury.