The Deputy Minister of Oil for Extraction Affairs, Bassim Mohammed, stated that Iraqi oil sector officials will meet with representatives from international oil companies and officials from Iraqi Kurdistan in early January/December to discuss amendments to contracts focusing on the latest efforts to resume northern oil exports through Turkey. He noted that the resumption of northern crude exports, which have been halted since March, depends on renegotiating existing production-sharing contracts to change them to a profit-sharing model.
Mohammed told Reuters that "if an agreement is reached with these companies to modify their contracts, oil exports through Turkey will then resume." He added, "We expect to reach an agreement with the companies. These companies want to continue operating in the region without any problems." He stated that these contracts will be similar to the model used in Iraq's fifth licensing round with UAE-based Crescent Petroleum.
Turkey halted the export of 450,000 barrels per day of northern Iraqi oil on March 25, following a ruling from the International Chamber of Commerce in an arbitration case. The ruling orders Turkey to pay Iraq $1.5 billion in damages for losses incurred due to the unauthorized oil exports by the Kurdistan Regional Government between 2014 and 2018.
