Iraq Still Reviewing Proposed Amendments to Restart Oil Flows Via Turkey

The Iraqi federal government is still studying the proposed amendment to the federal budget that would allow Baghdad to pay international oil companies that are operating in the Kurdistan region, Iraq’s oil minister Hayyan Abdul Ghani said.

• “We seek to accelerate the settlement of the cost issue and resume exports as soon as possible,” Abdul Ghani said.
• The Oil Ministry hopes to review and amend contracts signed between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the international companies, he said.
• The proposed amendment would allow IOCs in the Kurdistan region to resume crude oil production and exports via the Turkish port of Ceyhan.
• Flows via the pipeline to Turkey have been halted since end-March 2023.
• Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is due to visit Iraq next month.
• Turkish and Iraqi officials met in Baghdad on 14 March but there was no mention of the potential re-opening of the Iraq-Turkey pipeline in the post meet statements as expected prior to the meet.