ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Saturday lauded the resumption of Kurdistan Region’s oil exports, labeling it a ‘great achievement’ for Erbil and Baghdad.

“This agreement with the [Iraqi] federal government is a great achievement for the people of Iraq, and especially for the people of the Kurdistan Region,” Barzani said at a conference in Erbil. “I commend all the individuals and parties that had a vital role in succeeding this process.”

Exports of crude oil from the Kurdistan Region through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline resumed on Saturday after a 30-month halt, following the signing of a breakthrough agreement between Erbil, Baghdad, and international oil companies operating in the Region. 

“​​After several years since the halt of Kurdistan Region’s oil exports to external markets, once more, today, Kurdistan Region’s oil was exported to global markets,” Barzani stated. 

The premier particularly thanked the United States for its role in restarting the exports. 

“The role of the United States, be it Washington, their embassy in Baghdad, or their consulate here in Erbil, was a great support in advancing this process,” he emphasized. 

Per the agreement, the Kurdistan Region will deliver “all crude oil” produced from its fields to Iraq’s State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) to be exported through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline, apart from quantities allocated for domestic use.

Myles Caggins, spokesperson for the Association of the Petroleum Industry of Kurdistan (APIKUR), told The New Region that the oil firms are “very thankful” to Prime Minister Barzani and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani for their “assistance” in reaching the tripartite deal.

“We anticipate that the exports will increase to approximately 230,000 oil barrels per day, with 50,000 barrels reserved for domestic consumption,” the spokesperson added, noting that the oil companies have the ability to export at this rate.

Mohammed al-Najjar, Iraq’s representative to OPEC, told state media on Saturday that “Iraq can export more than the current amount after the return of the [Iraq-Turkey] Ceyhan pipeline exports.” 

The Kurdistan Region’s oil exports through Turkey’s Ceyhan port have been halted since March 2023, when a Paris-based arbitration court ruled that Ankara had breached a 1973 pipeline agreement by allowing Erbil to start selling oil independently in 2014, awarding the case to Baghdad. 

Erbil and Baghdad had since announced several agreements to resume exports, but the process had been blocked due to international oil producers demanding payment surety, transparent implementation of Iraq’s budget law stipulations, and resolution of payments that are in arrears before resuming their work. 

On Wednesday, oil firms involved in the tripartite agreement said that “the agreed framework maintains the sanctity of existing contracts and provides surety of payment to the IOCs.”