Baghdad-INA
The Ministry of Oil announced on Saturday that talks are continuing with foreign companies to resume work in the oil fields, confirming that oil exports through the Turkish port of Ceyhan are imminent.
The ministry spokesman, Sahib Bazoun, told the Iraqi News Agency (INA): “Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi is very interested in bringing revenues to the Iraqi state, and Oil Minister Basim Muhammad Khudair has put in place the ministry’s work mechanisms and future projects, the most important of which is the project to maximize revenues through oil exports by activating the outlets and reaching an agreement with the parties in dispute over the export of Iraqi oil.”
He pointed out that “most of the foreign companies operating within the licensing rounds have withdrawn, and some fields have stopped operating, but the oil sector has maintained the oil reservoirs and fields, and we do not have any significant problems in the fields or exports,” indicating that “discussions are underway with the foreign companies operating to resume work.”
He confirmed that "the coming days will witness the export of oil through the Turkish port of Ceyhan, and the ministry is ready for export operations."
Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi visited the Ministry of Oil last Wednesday and chaired a meeting of the ministry's senior staff.
According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Media Office, the Prime Minister listened to a briefing presented by the Minister of Oil on the progress of the ministry’s projects, particularly regarding procedures for addressing the crisis of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the cessation of oil exports,he also reviewed the ongoing associated gas projects and highlighted the most prominent challenges facing their progress.
The meeting addressed the issue of oil exports and finding diverse export outlets, the mechanism for implementing Cabinet decisions in this regard, as well as discussing the procedures of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding following up on agreements concluded with a number of neighboring countries for exporting oil by land.
Oil Minister Bassem Mohammed Khudair had previously confirmed that the ministry’s priorities during the next phase are to increase production capacities, end the issue of flared gas, and develop the infrastructure of the oil sector, noting that the current circumstances are difficult as a result of the war in the region and what it caused in terms of the closure of the southern export outlet, indicating that Iraq exported only 10 million barrels through Hormuz during last April due to the war.