Erbil, Baghdad to hold first round of talks on Kurdish oil

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Erbil and Baghdad on Monday will hold the first round of talks regarding the Kurdistan Region’s oil and energy sector weeks after the Iraqi top court ruled the Kurdish oil and gas to be unconstitutional.

A high-ranking delegation representing the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is expected to meet with Iraqi officials in Baghdad to “discuss the executive procedures” and to “agree on a new and a standard mechanism” for managing the Region’s oil, read a statement from the Iraqi oil ministry on Monday.

The ministry noted that it has held “intensive and special meetings and workshops with local and international experts,” assigning consultants to review all contracts concluded between the KRG and international companies.

In mid-February, the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court ruled against the Kurdistan Region’s oil and gas law that regulates the oil sector in the Region, putting its industry in jeopardy. The ruling was widely condemned by Kurdish officials.

The KRG passed its oil and gas law in 2007, enabling it to administer and develop its own oil and gas resources.

The top court’s decision found the law to be “unconstitutional,” and therefore struck down the legal basis for the independence of the Kurdistan Region’s oil and gas sector. The decision came amid ongoing political tension and an ongoing government formation process as the country has failed to elect a president six months after the elections.

The KRG, at the time, responded to the decision saying the court’s ruling in unconstitutional and unjust.

Erbil has since expressed its readiness to discuss the matter with Baghdad.

The KRG’s delegation, which arrived in the Iraqi capital on Sunday, consists of government figures and officials from the natural resources ministry, along with three ministers, the statement noted, without disclosing names.

The talks aim to serve the public interest and to contribute to strengthening and supporting the national economy and the integration of the national oil industry, the Iraqi oil ministry noted in its statement.

Disputes rose between Baghdad and Erbil in early 2014, when Baghdad cut the Region’s share of the federal budget, setting into motion a series of crises that the KRG still suffers from. By March 2014, the KRG started exporting its oil abroad in an attempt to secure the salaries of its employees.

KRG’s Deputy PM Qubad Talabani on Saturday said the court’s decree against the Kurdish oil is an opportunity to settle the issue of oil with Baghdad.

The Iraqi and Kurdish governments were once again brought around the table in 2021 when Iraq was drafting its budget law. Both sides agreed that the KRG would continue its oil sales, and in return would hand the revenue of 250,000 barrels of oil to Baghdad daily.