Page 5 - DMEA Week 14 2022

DMEA COMMENTARY DMEA

Baz Karim Barzanji

transferred to the latter. were Kurdish plans to export gas to Europe via
While Iraq continues to struggle to form Turkey with the support and involvement of
a government, the next step of passing a 2022 Israel.
budget is likely, as in previous years, to be held An Iraqi official said: “There had been two
up by wrangling about the KRG’s revenues from recent meetings between Israeli and US energy
oil exports and non-oil revenues that include officials and specialists at the villa to discuss ship-
customs fees and taxes. ping Kurdistan gas to Turkey via a new pipeline.”
In previous budgets the KRG has been allo- Meanwhile, Turkish officials said that talks
cated 12.67% of the total budget, with this con- between US and Israel had been held to dis-
tingent on it handing over the net revenues from cuss the plan, but did not disclose the location.
250,000 bpd of oil exports to Somo and giving Another Iraqi security official said, however,
these to the central treasury. that Barzanji’s villa had been the meeting place.
“There had been two recent meetings between
Refinery attack Israeli and US energy officials and specialists at
This week, three missiles landed near the 100,000 the villa to discuss shipping Kurdistan gas to Tur-
bpd Erbil refinery owned by the domestic KAR key via a new pipeline,” he said.
Group. For Iran’s part, Reuters quoted an Iranian
While the strikes did not cause and dam- security official as saying that the strikes were a
age or casualties, the missiles mark the second “multi-purposed message to many people and
attack to target related to KAR CEO Baz Karim groups. It’s up to them how to interpret it. What-
Barzanji in the last few weeks after his home was ever [Israel] is planning, from energy sector to
struck by ballistic missiles fired by Iran’s Islamic agriculture, will not materialise.”
Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). However, Barzanji has insisted that he is not
This week, the Iraqi News Agency (INA) said involved in any such discussions and has no
that “initial information show the missiles were knowledge of plans to export gas from Kurdistan
launched from Nineveh” Province in Federal to Europe, noting that he does not believe that
Iraq. the region has the capacity to export gas at any
KAR has previously drawn ire from Baghdad point in the near future.
for its operation of the Bai Hassan and Avana oil- While Kurdistan is developing sizeable
fields near Kirkuk, of which Kurdish Peshmerga gas resources in addition to its well-known oil
fighters took control during efforts to counter reserves, the expansion of the region’s energy
Islamic State insurgency. However, Iraqi and sector will continue to draw the scrutiny of its
Turkey security officials have said that while the southern and eastern neighbours, both of which
latest strikes have been meant as a warning to would want to exert greater influence over
American allies, the main reason behind them Erbil.™

Week 14 07•April•2022 www. NEWSBASE .com P5