ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi Oil Minister Basim Mohammed Khudair arrived in Ankara on Saturday to sign an interim agreement with Turkey to allow Baghdad to continue exporting oil to international markets through the neighboring country until a long-term deal is reached, said ministry spokesperson.
“The agreement will remain temporary until an agreed draft of a long-term deal is reached and signed with the Turkish side. The long-term agreement will cover energy projects,” spokesperson Salim al-Rukabi told Rudaw’s Srwa Hawramy.
The temporary deal is aimed at giving both countries time to negotiate a longer-term agreement. Iraq had sought to renew the previous agreement, which recently expired, but Turkey wanted to change its terms.
"Our goal is to sign a comprehensive energy cooperation agreement as soon as possible," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said during a joint press conference with the Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi in Ankara on Tuesday.
Erdogan quoted Zaidi as telling him Iraq can supply Turkey with one million barrels of oil per day.
"He says, 'Don't be dependent on anyone else.' One million barrels. Yes, Mr. Prime Minister, there's no need to be dependent on anyone. If we can transfer one million barrels of oil from our immediate neighbor Iraq, God willing, it will meet our needs," Erdogan added.
Rukabi said the temporary agreement will be signed between the State Organization for Marketing of Oil (SOMO) and the North Oil Company on the Iraqi side, and BOTAS company on the Turkish side.
“It will reserve a maximum initial export capacity of around 750,000 barrels per day, contingent on improved security conditions, the restoration of the Kurdistan Region’s production to full capacity, and the completion of logistical work to transport larger quantities of southern Iraqi oil northward,” he noted.
The spokesperson also stated that the work is underway to complete “the procedures needed to begin construction of the new Basra–Haditha–Kirkuk–Ceyhan pipeline, which is intended to increase oil exports through Turkey.”
Updated at 1:31 pm
