Oil exports from Iraq to Turkey fell month-on-month in July due to the attack on the Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline, the Kurdish Regional Government Ministry of Natural Resources said Monday in an official statement.
In July, crude oil exports from Iraq to Turkey's southern province of Ceyhan, where oil is stored and shipped to international markets, totaled 16 million barrels, which is 6.5 percent less than the previous month.
Crude oil exports to Turkey from the Kurdish region totaled 12 million barrels, while exports from the Kirkuk province were four million barrels in July, the KRG statement noted.
In June, the pipeline supplied 571,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil to Turkey, totaling 17.13 million barrels during the whole month of June, the statement added.
Due to the attack in late July, oil transit through the pipeline was suspended for 111 hours, the statement said, adding that the KRG had to send less crude oil to Baghdad’s oil marketing company SOMO.
According to the KRG, the attack on July 29 was conducted by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) group, which is listed by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU as a terrorist group. The attack made on the pipeline was in the Sirnak province of southeastern Turkey, near the border with Iraq.
The KRG President Masoud Barzani, Prime Minister Nechervan Barzani, the Kurdish parliament and officials condemned the PKK after the attack. The KRG's Ministry of Natural Resources said on Aug. 2 that the attack cost the government over $250 million.
Although the Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline has a capacity of 1.6 million barrels per day, it ships around 400,000 barrels a day (bpd), but actual flows are around 300,000 bpd due to attacks on the pipeline.
'Since July 27, there have been repeated attempted thefts and sabotage attacks on the pipelines...This has led to an almost complete stoppage in the flow of crude oil to Ceyhan,' a previous KRG statement said on Aug. 2.
Reporting by Idris Okuducu
Writing by Ovunc Kutlu
Anadolu Agency
ovunc.kutlu@aa.com.tr