KRG delegation arrives in Baghdad to discuss 2020 budget

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region— A delegation from Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) arrived in Baghdad today to discuss its share of the 2020 Iraqi budget. 

The delegation, consisting of ministers and other senior officials are now said to be in talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi. 

The trip comes one day after statements from Iraq’s oil minister that Erbil could soon send 250,000 barrels of oil per day to the Iraqi government. 

Iraq’s 2019 budget law stipulates that the KRG shall hand over 250,000 barrels of oil daily to Baghdad in return for roughly 12 percent of the federal budget.

Iraq’s Oil Minister Thamir al-Ghadhban told Iraqi al-Ahd TV on Friday that Erbil has not sent a “drop” of oil since 2016 but it may start in the new year. 

Baghdad cut the KRG’s share of the budget from 17 percent to zero in 2014 in response to the region’s independent oil sales to Turkey. 

The funding cut, coupled with a costly war with the Islamic State (ISIS) and the collapse of global oil prices in 2016, plunged the Kurdistan Region into a financial crisis. 

“The [Kurdistan] Regional Government is obliged to hand over at least 250,000 barrels per day to the Iraqi Oil Marketing Company (SOMO) for sale in Ceyhan, Turkey,” al-Ghabdan said.

He added that he has told SOMO officials to prepare for deliveries from the KRG to begin in 2020.

Recent protests in Baghdad and elsewhere in Iraq have negatively affected the talks as the federal government focuses on curbing the demonstrations that have spread across the country’s south.

KRG spokesperson, Jutiar Adil, told Rudaw on Friday that they are close to reaching a deal with Baghdad on the budget share. 

“We have previously expressed our goodwill to the Iraqi government and we are optimistic about the talks,” he said.

Sherwan Mirza, member of the Iraqi Parliament’s financial committee told Rudaw if the KRG starts sending the specified amount of the oil, it will “ return a sort of trust between both governments.”

He added that this will embolden the KRG to ask for other financial privileges. 

Fars Musa, a KRG representative in Baghdad reiterated that the KRG is ready to send oil to Baghdad once a deal is procured. 

Izzet Sabir, an economic expert and former lawmaker for the Kurdistan parliament has also advised the KRG to send the oil to Baghdad to increase profits.

“The money we receive in return is more than the amount we get if we sell the oil ourselves because Baghdad sells its for five dollars more and pays the transportation fees,” he told Rudaw on Saturday.