SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region — A planned tripartite meeting involving the Kurdistan Region’s Ministry of Natural Resources, international oil companies, and Iraq’s Oil Ministry to discuss the long-awaited resumption of oil exports has been postponed, Zoom News has learned.
Iraqi Oil Minister Hayyan Abdul Ghani, speaking at the Sulaimani Forum, had earlier announced that he would meet with the Kurdistan Region’s Ministry of Natural Resources on Saturday to address the export deadlock. Despite the delay, Abdul Ghani expressed optimism that outstanding issues could be resolved soon and that exports would resume.
Since the Iraqi parliament’s recent budget amendment—setting the oil production cost at $16 per barrel—talks between Erbil and Baghdad have intensified. However, international oil firms operating in the Kurdistan Region continue to seek guarantees from Baghdad regarding reimbursement for past operational costs.
No new date for the postponed meeting has been announced.