Iraqi oil minister: Iraq exceeds expectations for June oil sales

 
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Iraqi Oil Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi has claimed Iraq for the fifth consecutive month was able to beat projections for oil sales.
 
Abdul-Mahdi said in a statement Iraq has compensated for low oil figures from the state oil marketer SOMO. Exports are up in the port of Basra, he continued, saying on average 3.19 million barrels of oil per day were shipped in June. The country exported 3.15 million barrels per day in May and 3.08 million barrels per day in April. The Kurdistan Regional Government exported 360,000 barrels in June.
 
Abdul-Mahdi also took aim at critics of the state’s oil exports, saying many companies had shortsightedly canceled their plans and left Iraq due to the war against ISIS and the destruction of oil installations.
 
“The KRG promised during official statements on June 3 and June 20 to deliver to us 500,000 barrels per day,” he added. “We have not allocated extra quantities for domestic consumption in refineries, electricity and companies, otherwise June exports would have exceeded 3.6 million barrels per day.”