Baghdad Expects Resumption of Northern Exports Within Two Weeks

Iraqi Minister of Oil Hayyan Abdul-Ghani announced today, Wednesday, that Iraq expects to reach an agreement with the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government to resume the flow of oil exports from the region within two weeks. Turkey halted the flow of 450,000 barrels per day of northern exports through the Iraqi-Turkish pipeline on March 25 after the International Chamber of Commerce issued a ruling in favor of Iraq in an arbitration case. The International Chamber of Commerce ordered Turkey to pay Baghdad $1.5 billion in compensation for damages caused by the Kurdistan Regional Government's illegal oil exports between 2014 and 2018. The federal government was exporting about 75,000 barrels per day of federal crude through the Iraqi-Turkish pipeline, while the Kurdistan Regional Government exported the remaining amount.