BAGHDAD: Iraq wants the Kurdistan region to stop independent crude exports and to hand over sales operations to the Iraqi state-oil marketer SOMO, the company’s director said on Thursday.
Iraq is talking to Turkey to allow SOMO to sell the Kurdish crude that arrives by pipeline in Ceyhan, the Turkish terminal on the Mediterranean, acting SOMO director general Alaa Al-Yasiri told reporters in Baghdad.
About 530,000 barrels per day (bpd) used to arrive in Ceyhan via the pipeline until mid-October, of which about half came from the Kurdistan Regional Government’s oilfields and the rest from Kirkuk, a disputed province claimed by both the Kurdish region and Iraqi authorities in Baghdad.
Output from Kirkuk fell in mid-October, when Iraqi forces took back control of the northern region’s oilfields from Kurdish fighters who had been there since 2014.
Kurdish Peshmerga forces deployed in Kirkuk in 2014, when the Iraqi army fled in the face of an advance by Daesh militants. The Kurdish move prevented the militants taking control of the oilfields.
The pipeline carried on average 419,000 bpd in October, down from 600,000 bpd in September, said Farid Al-Jadir, the director general of North Oil Company, which operates Kirkuk.
NOC should resume exports from Kirkuk through the Kurdish pipeline this month, after the two sides agree on terms of use, Al-Yasiri said. Kirkuk would also export by tanker trucks about 15,000 bpd to the refinery of Kermanshah in Iran, he added.
Al-Yasiri expected an old pipeline that bypasses most of the Kurdistan region to resume operation in three months.
The pipeline was severely damaged by Islamic State after it took over Mosul’s Nineveh province in 2014. US-backed Iraqi forces ousted the group from Mosul in July, after a nine-month campaign supported by Kurdish Peshmerga fighters.
Iraq, the second-largest producer of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries after Saudi Arabia, supported any future decision by the group to support oil prices, Al-Yasiri said.
OPEC is expected to extend curbs on oil output when it meets in Vienna at the end of month.
Iraq ‘wants control of Kurdish region’s oil exports’
Iraq ‘wants control of Kurdish region’s oil exports’
Closing Bell: Saudi main index closes in green at 10,917
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index rose on Monday, gaining 4.86 points, or 0.04 percent, to close at 10,917.04.
The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR3.95 billion ($1.05 billion), as 102 of the listed stocks advanced, while 147 retreated.
The MSCI Tadawul Index increased, up 0.54 points, or 0.04 percent, to close at 1,467.06.
The Kingdom’s parallel market Nomu lost 85.41 points, or 0.36 percent, to close at 23,357.50. This comes as 19 of the listed stocks advanced, while 46 retreated.
The best-performing stock was Tourism Enterprise Co., with its share price surging by 10 percent to SR13.53.
Other top performers included Al Yamamah Steel Industries Co., which saw its share price rise by 8.64 percent to SR39.22, and Anaam International Holding Group, which saw a 4.05 percent increase to SR12.59.
Alramz Real Estate Co. saw its share price rising by 3.95 percent to close at SR61.85, while Umm Al Qura for Development and Construction Co. closed at SR18.08, marking a 3.67 percent increase in share price.
On the downside, the worst performer of the day was Saudi Industrial Export Co., whose share price fell by 3.72 percent to SR2.59.
ACWA Power Co. saw its share price fall 3.54 percent to SR177.20, while Naseej International Trading Co. declined 3.08 percent to SR29.56.
Moreover, the share price of Rabigh Refining and Petrochemical Co. dropped 2.95 percent to close at SR6.57, while Nice One Beauty Digital Marketing Co. saw its share price dropping 2.65 percent to SR17.97.
On the announcement front, Alinma Capital has declared a cash dividend distribution totaling SR6.55 million for unitholders of the Alinma Saudi Government Sukuk ETF Fund.
The dividend, covering the period from July to December, amounts to SR0.162 per unit and represents approximately 1.56 percent of the fund’s net asset value as of Jan. 15.
Its share price closed at SR10.42 on the main market, marking a 0.1 percent increase.
Also, Itmam Consultancy Co. has been awarded a significant project by the Digital Government Authority to develop digital investment skills within the public sector.
The contract, officially granted on Jan. 19, is valued at more than 5 percent of the company’s total 2024 revenue.
According to a statement, the program aims to equip government employees with the expertise needed to enhance digital government investment efficiency, focusing on software license development aligned with legal and technical standards.
Its share price remained unchanged on Nomu at SR16.40.
