Kurdistan oil producers say no deal made on resuming exports

International oil companies in Iraq’s semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan denied reports that a deal was made to resume oil exports through the Iraqi-Turkey pipeline.

“We have not even seen any proposals” from Iraq or the Kurdistan Regional Government, the Association of the Petroleum Industry of Kurdistan, which represents the oil producers and is known as APIKUR, said Saturday in a statement.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said earlier Saturday that Iraq may amend its federal budget to pay recovery and transit fees to international oil companies in a bid to restart a crucial oil pipeline after a year, and that talks among the parties were underway.

Meetings were formally held Jan. 7-9 in Baghdad but no concrete progress was made to resume exports, the statement added. APIKUR in January asked the US to help persuade the Iraqi government to resume oil exports from the Kurdistan region, the group said in a January statement. 

The pipeline’s closing last March has cut off nearly half a million barrels of crude per day from global markets.