Iraq moves to resume Kurdistan oil exports within hours

Shafaq News/ Iraq will resume oil exports from the Kurdistan region via Turkiye’s Ceyhan port in the coming hours, Deputy Prime Minister for Energy and Oil Minister Hayan Abdul Ghani said on Friday.

Abdul Ghani stated during a visit to Khor Al-Zubair port that Iraq would begin exporting oil from the Kurdistan region through the state-run marketing firm SOMO at an initial rate of 185,000 barrels per day (bpd), gradually increasing to meet the federally approved quota.

Earlier today, the Oil Ministry said Abdul Ghani was overseeing the implementation of a 40-km dry gas pipeline project from Khor Al-Zubair to Shatt Al-Arab, aimed at ensuring gas supply for power generation.

The Oil Ministry said on Thursday that this project is “one of the key developmental initiatives, providing significant flexibility in transporting gas to power plants across Iraq.”

On Feb. 22, the Oil Ministry announced that Iraq had completed procedures to resume exports of oil produced in the Kurdistan region, urging Kurdish authorities to hand over output from operational fields to SOMO.

OPEC’s production and exports remain under scrutiny after former US President Donald Trump last month urged the group to “lower oil prices.”