Iraq Resumes Kurdistan Oil Exports After 30-Month Halt

Oil exports from the Kurdistan Region through the Iraq–Turkey pipeline have resumed after a 30-month suspension, following a landmark agreement between Baghdad, Erbil, and international oil companies.

The exports, suspended since March 2023 after an arbitration ruling in Paris against Ankara for breaching a 1973 pipeline accord, have now restarted through Turkey’s Ceyhan port.

The move marks a major step toward stabilising Iraq’s energy sector and improving coordination between the federal and regional governments.

Prime Minister Mohammed Al-Sudani welcomed the resumption as a significant milestone that reinforces Iraq’s sovereignty over its natural resources. He also met with representatives of HKN Energy, a US-based oil and gas company that played a key role in facilitating the recent agreement to resume exports and reopen the Iraq–Türkiye pipeline.

Al-Sudani described HKN’s investment partnership as a positive indicator of growing international confidence in Iraq’s energy sector and reaffirmed the government’s openness to cooperation with major global companies.

According to the Association of the Petroleum Industry of Kurdistan (APIKUR), current exports stand at about 185,000 barrels per day, with expectations to rise to 230,000 barrels per day in the coming period.