AMMAN —
Iraqi crude oil exports to Jordan resumed following a nearly two-month hiatus, which
the government attributed to logistical reasons, but local experts contended
was sparked by political tensions in Iraq.
اضافة اعلان
On Monday, local
media outlets quoted Minister of Energy and Mineral resources Saleh
Al-Kharabsheh as saying that “following completion of logistical procedures,
Iraqi oil exports to Jordan have been resumed.”
Energy expert
Amer Al-Shobaki pointed out that “Jordan imports around 1,000 barrels of Iraqi
crude oil a day, providing jobs to 250 tanks and truck drivers, thus, reducing
unemployment in the transportation sector.”
“In addition,
Iraq offers preferential prices for the oil exported to Jordan, with a discount
reaching $16 under the Brent benchmark,” Shobaki told
Jordan News.
He said the
discount “leaves around $7 for transportation cost, and $7 to $8 in revenues
per barrel for the government”, he added.
“Jordan makes
about $25 million revenues each year due to this discount,” he revealed.
He explained
that the reason for the suspension of Iraqi oil exports in the past two months
“is due to the fact that Iraqis had problems in controlling the Kirkuk oil field,
which is within the jurisdiction of the Kurds”.
Other reasons, he noted, included “certain problems
in the exchange of underground wealth between the central government of Iraq
and the government of Kurdistan”.
He maintained
that “Iraq needs to export oil through Jordan, since it has limited export
outlets, including Basrah and Turkey, which is always subject to technical
issues and closures.”
Shobaki noted
that besides Iraq, Jordan imports the remainder of 40 percent of its need of
crude oil, or 40,000 barrels daily, from Saudi Arabia’s Aramco oil company.
“The remaining
60 percent is imported by oil firms, such as Manaseer and Total”, he pointed
out.
Shobaki said he
hoped that the government will reflect the revenues it generates from the
preferential Iraqi price on the local prices of fuel derivatives sold to
citizens.
Another energy
expert, Hashem Aqel, said that “political circumstances and a decline in crude
oil production are the reasons behind ceasing the crude oil imports from Iraq.”
Aqel told
Jordan
News that “the suspension had not negatively impacted Jordan’s consumption
of oil because the country has spare quantities that suffice for almost 30
days.”
“The quantities
which were supposed to arrive to Jordan during that period are considered small,
thus people did not feel the consequences,” he noted.
He added that
“Jordan plays a key role in oil exports, especially if the Iraq-Jordan oil
pipeline is in operation.” He said the pipeline is a “vital project that has
been initiated since 1980, and could be used in case any export outlets are
shut down”.
The Basrah-Aqaba
Oil Pipeline, also known as the Iraq-Jordan Export Pipeline, is a proposed oil
pipeline which stretches from Basra, in Iraq’s southernmost tip to Jordan’s Red
Sea Port of Aqaba. It can transfer around 1 million barrels a day.
“It is
beneficial to Jordan”, Aqel said. “It can employ around 20,000 employees, if
250,000 barrels are transferred to Jordan Petroleum Refinery.”
He explained
that the benefit is mutual, but “Iraq is the main beneficiary, yet, the
preferred price per barrel Iraq gives to Jordan has nothing to do with the
pipeline,” he said.
“It is purely
for economic reasons” to help Jordan cope with the increasing oil prices, he
added.
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