ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — The Qayyarah field in Nineveh resumed pumping oil at the rate of 30,000 bpd after a shutdown during the ISIS occupation which halted production and revenue for the people of Mosul for four years.
"We are resuming the production at the Qayyarah oil field in the province of Nineveh by an average of 30,000 barrels per day, following the comprehensive reconstruction of damaged wells, installations and pipelines," Iraqi Oil Minister Jabbar al-Luaibi announced on Wednesday.
Luaibi described the move as a "national achievement" and a "victory over the terrorist gangs that deliberately sabotaged, destroyed and burned all oil wells."
He appreciated the determination by North Oil Company in repairing the destroyed wells.
They plan to increase volume to 60,000 bpd by the end of the year.
He added the Qayyarah oil, even before the ISIS takeover, had just been allocated for domestic use and that is why "the exportation of oil produced from the field of Qayyarah is the first in its history."
According to Iraq’s oil ministry, there are 50 oil wells in the town, 34 of which had been damaged as the result of fighting between Iraqi forces and ISIS last year. ISIS had set the wells ablaze to create a protective screen against air strikes. It took several months for the Iraqi government to put out the flames.
Facing imminent defeat, ISIS lit the fields a blaze which caused respiratory problems for locals in the city and those downwind as far as the Kurdistan Region’s capital of Erbil.
The task of extinguishing the fires was arduous in November 2016.
Iraq is in the process of forming a new government. Iraq is a founding member of OPEC.
