ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraq’s oil ministry said on Monday that the country exported an average of 2.6 million barrels of oil per day in September amid ongoing disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

During a Sunday parliamentary session to discuss the country’s oil and fuel crises, Oil Minister Basim Mohammed Khudair said daily exports had fallen below 200,000 barrels due to the ongoing war when the new Iraqi cabinet was formed in May, but had since risen to more than 4 million bpd.

The ministry clarified in a statement Monday that the more than 4 million barrels figure “was recorded for one day of exports only,” adding that Iraq’s average daily crude oil exports during September had reached approximately 2.6 million barrels.

The US-Iran war and the subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz have taken a significant toll on Iraq’s oil exports and economy, as the country ships the majority of its crude through the strategic waterway.

In mid-August, Khudair said Iraq had reached around 2 million bpd since the start of the month.

Iraq exported 18.6 million barrels of crude oil in March as the war began, generating about $1.95 billion in revenue, a steep plunge from February, when it exported 99.8 million barrels and earned $6 billion.

Baghdad has sought alternative methods to alleviate difficulties in exporting oil through the blockaded strait.

July exports, despite a considerable increase from the outbreak of the war, remained nearly half of the volume Iraq exported before March.