Page 6 - MEOG Week 44

MEOG PIPeLInes & transPort MEOG
Iraqi exports fall as unrest reaches oil sector
Iraq
IRaq said last week that oil exports fell by nearly 130,000 barrels per day in October as oil work- ers started to join widespread anti-government protests.
Baghdad said that it was continuing to pro- duce below capacity, in line with its commitment to the OPEC/non-OPEC output cut.
Iraq’s current quota is 4.51mn bpd, with pro- duction having run at around 4.88mn bpd dur- ing the summer.
Exports dropped to 3.447mn bpd in Octo- ber from 3.576mn bpd in September, it said. The bulk of the drop came as a result of reduced flows through terminals at Basra, where exports decreased to 3.34mn bpd from 3.434mn bpd in September. The statement added that flows from Kirkuk to the Turkish port of Ceyhan via the Kirkuk-Ceyhan Pipeline had averaged just 83,220 bpd.
It is unclear what impact the civil unrest has had on production in northern Iraq, though the piped volumes are down around 20% compared to august, when 105,000 bpd flowed through the conduit.
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Jordan have proved reliable, running at 10,000 bpd since they began in early September under a deal signed earlier in the year between Jordanian Minister of Energy Hala Zawati and Iraq’s minis- ter of oil, Thamir Ghadhban.
Iraq said that it had realised an average sale price of $57.153 per barrel during October, which generated around $6.107bn in revenue.
Meanwhile, oil workers have reportedly joined anti-government rallies in a first sign that the sector could become embroiled in the ongo- ing unrest.
While oil sites have not yet been targeted by efforts to bring down the government, concern is growing that this could be on the horizon.
In late October ISIS forces attacked check- points at alas oilfield in Salahuddin Province, killing two security workers and injuring three.
Reuters quoted a statement from the Iraqi army as saying: “Elements of the terrorist daesh gangs attacked two security checkpoints in the alas oilfields area of Salahuddin Province, and an improvised explosive device blew up a vehi- cle belonging to security forces stationed there, leadingtothemartyrdomoftwoofthem.”™
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 44 05•November•2019