Iraq's deputy oil minister says Baghdad is repairing an oil pipeline that will allow it to send up to 350,000 barrels of oil a day to Turkey by the end of the month. This was reported by Reuters, according to UNN.
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It is noted that such a step is likely to cause dissatisfaction with oil companies and the Kurdish government of the region. The reopening of the Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline, which has been closed for ten years, will provide an alternative route to the oil pipeline from the Kurdish region, which has been out of service for a year due to protracted negotiations between Baghdad and the KRG.
Baghdad considers production sharing agreements between Kurds and foreign companies using the KRG oil pipeline to be illegal.
The federal government of Baghdad will require oil companies to negotiate with it to sell their oil through the restored pipeline to Turkey, which may cause discontent among Kurds who depend on oil revenues. Exports through this pipeline were suspended in 2014 after attacks by Islamic State militants.
Repair work is ongoing, and the key pumping station with technical facilities has been completed. It is likely that the pipeline will be ready to resume flow by the end of this month