Ministry of Oil publishes clarification on 'erroneous and misleading' statement4 Apr 2025 12:20
Today, Friday (April 4, 2025), the Ministry of Oil published a statement clarifying a false and misleading statement that was published by the Abikour Association regarding the contracts concluded between its companies and the Kurdistan Regional Government last March.
The ministry indicated in a statement received by "Baghdad Today" that "the statement of the Abikor Association issued on March 28, 2025, which claimed that the ministry expressed its unwillingness to negotiate a solution that meets the contracts concluded between Abikor companies and the Kurdistan Regional Government. The Ministry of Oil regrets the publication of this false and misleading statement."
The statement added that "the Ministry of Oil is working to ensure the proper application of the amendment to the budget law adopted on February 2, 2025, so that exports can start through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline as soon as possible," noting that "the amendment to the budget law stipulates that the Federal Ministry of Finance will compensate the Kurdistan Regional Government for the cost of producing and transporting crude oil delivered to the Iraqi Oil Marketing Company (SOMO) or to the Ministry of Oil. It also stipulates that the estimated fair costs of production and transportation for each field are calculated by an international consultant, and that these costs are used to determine payments from the Federal Ministry of Finance to the KRG. "The amendment to the budget law requires that all production in the Kurdistan Region be immediately handed over to the Iraqi Oil Marketing Company (SOMO) and the Federal Ministry of Oil, with a temporary compensation mechanism in place to make payments to the KRG while the international consultant is on duty."
The ministry continued: "The Government of Iraq has taken concrete and serious steps to prove its good faith in the negotiations and ensure the resumption of oil exports through the Iraq-Turkey (ITP) pipeline quickly and responsibly," noting that it "has worked continuously and in a manner that guarantees and serves the national interest of the country, and has made great efforts in preserving Iraq's resources and implementing legal and sustainable solutions."
The statement continued, "Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani stressed the sale of oil under illegal frameworks outside the responsibility of SOMO and its sale mechanisms is an infringement on the rights of the Iraqi people, and publicly defended the recent amendments to the General Budget Law - which were approved through a legitimate democratic mechanism - to enhance transparency and governance of oil resources management, and the government engaged at the highest levels to find a fair solution to this issue."
"The main challenge in these negotiations is that every time progress is made through a certain agreement, steps are taken that are not positive but not on the part of the Iraqi government, as unrealistic demands outside the legal frameworks hinder progres
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