ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi Oil Minister Hayyan Abdul Ghani said on Wednesday that more than 13 million barrels of oil from the Kurdistan Region have been exported through the Turkish port of Ceyhan since the resumption of shipments.
"More than 13 million barrels of oil from the Kurdistan Region have been exported to markets via the port of Ceyhan so far, with a daily export average ranging between 200,000 and 208,000 barrels," Abdul Ghani told Rudaw.
The Kurdistan Region’s oil exports restarted in late September under a tripartite agreement between Erbil, Baghdad, and the international oil companies operating in the Region. Exports had been halted in March 2023 after Iraq won a Paris-based arbitration case against Turkey.
The oil minister added that the first shipment of the Kurdistan Region's oil arrived in the United States earlier this month.
“All of the Kurdistan Region's oil is destined for European and American markets,” he added.
He detailed that talks on renewing the Iraq-Turkey pipeline agreement are advancing.
The 1973 agreement is set to expire in July 2026. Abdul Ghani said progress is being made toward finalizing a new deal following a first round of talks held in Ankara last month.
“The first round of meetings was positive, and the second meeting will be held soon in Baghdad so that we can reach the final drafting of the agreement,” he said.
On associated gas, the minister reported major progress in efforts to curb flaring.
“The rate of investment in associated gas has risen from 35 percent to 73 percent, and the ministry's plan is to invest in all the gas that is currently being flared by the end of 2029, bringing gas flaring to zero,” he stated.
The minister also outlined improvements in domestic fuel production, saying Iraq is moving close to full self-sufficiency.
“We have reached the level of self-sufficiency in kerosene and diesel, and gasoline production has reached 80 percent,” he said, adidng the goal is to "reach complete self-sufficiency in gasoline by the end of this year or the beginning of next year."
According to the minister, refining output has increased at the country’s largest facilities.
“Oil refining capacity at the Karbala, Baiji, and Basra refineries has reached 460,000 barrels per day, and for the first time, the Baiji refinery has begun producing gasoline with an octane rating above 95,” he said.
Iraq is the second largest oil producer in OPEC after Saudi Arabia. It produces an average 4.4 million barrels of oil per day. Of this number, it exports 3.3 million barrels, and uses the remaining to meet domestic demands.
Malik Mohammed contributed to this article
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