KT News: Ashti Hawrami, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) minister for natural resources, told a press conference in Erbil today that, in defiance of the Iraq central government, the KRG will press ahead with building its own oil export pipeline to Turkey. “We want to have an oil pipeline to ourselves,” announced Hawrami. “It is…
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Category Archives: Oil
KRG halts oil exports
KT News: The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has once again halted the export of oil through the pipelines to Turkey. This is due to the ongoing dispute between Baghdad and Erbil. Baghdad was supposed to make a second round of payments of liabilities to foreign oil companies by the middle of this month. However, it…
Survival Strategies and Diplomatic Tools: The Kurdistan Region’s Foreign Policy Outlook
By Shwan Zulal: In some basic outline, this paper gives the readers an idea where Kurdistan Region foreign policy is at and where it is heading. It also points out the values and mechanisms the KRG are using and have used to enhance their influence in the region, exploring the issues behind the headlines. I…
Baghdad warns ExxonMobil while a deal with Erbil is gathering momentum
By Shwan Zulal: It has been almost a year since super-major oil company ExxonMobil ventured into Iraq’s Kurdistan Region. Despite Baghdad’s harsh words against the company, it has suffered little punishment other than exclusion from the 4th bid round, in which it showed little interest anyway. Bookmark on Delicious Recommend on Facebook Share on Linkedin…
Gorran MP involved in oil controversy resigns for ‘health reasons’
KT News and Comment: Gorran MP Ismaeel Galali has resigned his seat in the Kurdistan parliament. In a resignation letter yesterday Galali cited health issues as the main reason for his decision. He also said that he does not want to spoil his legacy, having sacrificed a lot for the Kurdish nation. His resignation follows the…
Baghdad ‘to pay Kurdistan Region $900 million’ in oil dispute deal
KT News: Following the visit by a Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) delegation to Baghdad – headed by KRG natural resources minister Ashti Hawrami and under the supervision of Iraqi deputy prime minister Roz Nuri Shaways – Baghdad and Hawler have reached a preliminary agreement, due to be ratified by their respective cabinets, on the main points…
Iraq parliament sets up oil and energy committee to resolve dispute with Kurdistan Region
News from KT: The Iraqi parliament has set up a committee to try and resolve the protracted oil and energy disputes between the central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). The committee has 12 members from different political groups represented in the parliament. It has been tasked with drafting new legislation in respect of oil…
KRG to pay $1.5 billion liabilities to oil companies
News and Comment by KT: Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) natural resources minister Ashti Hawrami has announced that the KRG will take over responsibility for paying the liabilities owed to oil companies operating in Kurdistan. Two months ago the Iraqi government refused to pay liabilities of $1.5 billion to foreign companies, under the pretext that the…
More oil companies preparing to go to the Kurdistan Region
News from KT: Sources close to the international oil industry have told Al Hayat, a Saudi newspaper printed in London, that more oil companies are willing to go to the south of Kurdistan for oil exploration and investment The same source confirmed that Chevron had wanted to start operating in Kurdistan without any delay although…
Shahristani warms the ‘oil war’
News from KT: Iraqi Energy Minister Hussain Shahristani has announced plans to cut the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) budget from central government in response to the announcement by its advisors that the KRG is exporting crude oil to Turkey. Turkey is importing the crude oil from the Kurdistan Region because it can no longer do…
Kurdistan Region exports oil to Turkey
News and Comment by KT: According to natural resources minister Dr Ashti Hawrami, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has started exporting crude oil by truck to Turkey in order to provide basic services to the people of Kurdistan. “If we need to, we will export oil to Iran,” Seerwan Abubaqr, a spokesman for the ministry, added. “We will continue…
Pipe dreams or reality? The real deal behind Turkish-Kurdish oil plans
By Shwan Zulal: This article first appeared on Niqash In May, Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan announced they would build pipelines taking oil and gas from Iraq into Turkey, then possibly Europe. But behind the energy dream lurks a nightmare of militant Kurdish independence fighters and the spectres of energy giants, Iran and Russia. To some…
Looking beyond the Gulf and Russia: Kurdish energy on Europe’s doorsteps
By Shwan Zulal: First published by EUCERS (European Centre for Energy and Resource Security) While crude is hovering above $100 per barrel, the rhetoric against Iran is ratcheting up, followed by the US and EU sanctions against the regime. With Iranian exports being halted, global oil spare capacity is being squeezed. The Iraqi oil supply…
KRG halts oil exports in dispute with Baghdad
News from the Kurdistan Tribune: Further to our recent report, the Ministry of Natural Resources has today halted oil exports from Kurdistan and told the Iraq government in Baghdad that, until it pays foreign oil companies $1.5 billion owed for their work, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is not obliged to open the pipeline for…
KRG’s dispute with Iraqi government could halt oil exports
News from The Kurdistan Tribune: The dispute between the Iraqi federal government and the KRG could cause a halt to oil exports from Kurdistan. According to sources close to the KRG minister for natural resources, exports of crude oil have fallen to 50,000 barrels a day from a peak of 175,000 barrels a day. Bookmark…
