On Wednesday, Iraqi Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar said that Iraq is seeking to be exempted from the OPEC+ oil output cut in the first quarter of 2021, but the country will still comply with the cuts and compensation over the next three months.
The minister has brought up the exemption to the oil ministers of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its non-member oil producer allies (OPEC+) in three different meetings.
In August, he said that the country would compensate its overproduction in the previous three months by additionally cutting 400,000 bpd on top of its quota 850,000 bpd in the supply agreement. Iraq was firmly committed to the agreement and by the start of the month, it would reach 100% conformity.
According to the minister, Iraq’s total oil exports stood at 2.6 million bpd, down from July’s 2.763 million bpd. Exports from Kirkuk through the Turkish port of Ceyhan averaged at 97,000 bpd last month and the average price was USD43.70/barrel.
He added that the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region of Iraq is still exporting oil without consulting the Iraqi federal government.