SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region — Iraq on Tuesday decided to maintain oil production rates in line with the OPEC+ production policy, pumping lower barrels of oil in comparison with the last month’s exports following a ministerial meeting of the OPEC+.
A decision earlier today by the oil cartel sent the oil prices to nearly $90 a barrel, the highest in five months following a meeting between the OPEC+ energy ministers, as the group called on the member states to abide by the policy cuts.
The oil group overproduced by a net 275,000 bpd in January and by 175,000 bpd in February, according to Data from S&P Commodity Insights, known as Platts, the secondary sources used by OPEC+ to assess its members’ production compliance.
Iraq, in parallel with Gabon and Kazakhstan, exported oil above their quotas for the past two months. It should slash its exports by 130,000 bpd.
The spokesperson for the Iraqi oil ministry Assem Jihad told the Iraqi News Agency (INA) that: “The importance of maintaining previously established production levels was emphasized in addition to the commitment of member states in order to achieve greater stability and balance in global markets.”
The prices of oil have witnessed a significant hike this year, thanks to reduced supplies, attacks on Russian energy facilities amid the war with Ukraine and other conflicts in the Middle East.
Iraq’s prime source of revenue is derived from oil exports to cover its bloated public sector payroll, infrastructure projects and other costs.
