1 Jun 2009

Kurdish region to export oil for first time

8:13 am on 1 June 2009

The Kurdish region in Iraq will begin exporting crude oil for the first time on 1 June.

Regional officials say up to 90,000 barrels per day will be pumped from two Kurdish fields via an Iraqi pipeline to Turkey.

Initial exports will be about 40,000 barrels per day from seven wells in the Taq Taq field in the province of Arbil. Another 50,000 bpd will be sent from the Tawke field in Dohuk , northwest of Taq Taq, by a Norwegian oil company, DNO.

Exports from Tawke will link with the Iraq-Turkey main export pipeline at the border town of Fishkhabur.

Crude from Taq Taq will be trucked from the capital Arbil before connecting with the Iraq-Turkey export pipeline.

Regional president Massud Barzani will preside over an official ceremony on Monday.

Terms of the Taq Taq deal are for Baghdad to receive 88% of revenues, of which the Kurd region will get back 17%. Genel Enerji and Addax will share 12%.

The terms for DNO are reported to be similar to those in the Taq Taq field.

Iraq derives more than 90% of its revenues from the energy sector.

It has the world's third largest proven reserves of oil: more than 115 billion barrels, after Saudi Arabia and Iran.