Iraq pockets $10.6 billion in July oil revenue

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq in July pocketed $10.6 billion in oil revenues, the oil ministry said on Monday raising the country’s total oil revenue since the start of the year to over $70 billion.

Over 102 million barrels of oil were exported last month with a rate of 3.3 million barrels per day, as revealed by the ministry in its monthly report.

Iraq’s total gross amount from oil sales was placed at $11.608 billion, at an average price of $103 per barrel.

July’s numbers are Iraq’s lowest reported revenue from oil sales in three months. The oil ministry reported over $11.5 billion in oil revenue in June, Iraq’s highest ever recorded gross, and over $11.4 billion in May.

The revenue of July raises Iraq’s total gross to more than $71.9 billion dollars this year, only a few billion dollars shy of already surpassing the entire gross of 2021 which was reported to be over $75.6 billion dollars.

Iraq’s unprecedented high revenues are attributed to the surge in global oil prices caused by the Ukraine war. The United States has urged members of the Organization for the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), of which Iraq is a member, to increase their oil production levels in order to curb international reliance on Russian energy.

Oil revenue is Iraq’s main source of income, and the federal government relies on oil sales to cover its costs and pay the salaries of its civil servants.