Oil Companies Ready to Resume Kurdistan Exports, Reaffirm Commitment to Existing Contracts

Peregraf

International oil companies (IOCs) operating in the Kurdistan Region say they are ready to immediately resume oil exports through the Iraq-Türkiye Pipeline (ITP), on the condition that their financial entitlements are fully guaranteed and their existing contracts are honored without compromise.

In a statement released Monday, the Association of the Petroleum Industry of Kurdistan (APIKUR) emphasized that its member companies remain committed to their production-sharing contracts (PSCs), which they say are legally valid and governed by international law. The companies stress that they have not accepted any changes to the terms of these contracts, despite ongoing negotiations between the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the federal government in Baghdad.

“APIKUR member companies stand ready to resume exports as soon as written agreements are executed that honor our existing contracts,” said Myles B. Caggins III, APIKUR spokesperson. “Our members have never participated in any meetings with any governmental body suggesting otherwise.”

The statement follows a high-level meeting on July 12 between KRG and Baghdad officials, with participation from APIKUR members and other IOCs. The companies reiterated their position that exports can only resume once there are binding guarantees for timely payments, including arrears owed by the KRG, to be settled either in cash or in-kind (via shares of crude oil).

Baghdad Still Opposes PSCs

The federal government in Baghdad has repeatedly rejected the legality of the PSC model used by the KRG, preferring service contracts that give the state more control over production and revenue. This core disagreement has remained a stumbling block in efforts to unify Iraq’s oil policy and resume exports from the Kurdish region.

A source familiar with the talks told Peregraf that while negotiations have intensified in recent days, Baghdad is still refusing to take responsibility for the nearly $1 billion in unpaid dues owed to oil companies operating in the Kurdistan Region.

“The repayment of the oil companies’ debts has not been resolved, and Baghdad is not ready to repay them,” the source said.

Mounting Public Pressure

The deadlock comes amid growing public anger in the Kurdistan Region, where civil servants have not received their May and June salaries. Baghdad has tied the release of KRG funding to compliance with the federal budget law, which includes handing over oil revenues and non-oil income.

While oil companies have proposed a phased repayment mechanism, they insist that no exports will resume unless the terms of their original contracts are respected and future payments are guaranteed through enforceable, transparent agreements.

With talks ongoing for the fifth straight day in Erbil and Baghdad, pressure is mounting on both governments to reach an agreement that ends the 16-month-long export halt—one that satisfies both fiscal obligations and contractual rights.