Iraq’s oil exports have averaged more than 3.4 million barrels per day so far in October, up from 3 million bpd in September, Oil Minister Bassem Mohammed Khudair said on Monday, according to the state-run Iraqi News Agency (INA).
Khudair said Iraq was exporting crude through three routes: the Strait of Hormuz, Turkey’s Ceyhan port and tanker trucks through Syria, Reuters reported.
The crude is going to Europe, Asia and the Americas, and the ministry is working to expand export capacity to raise revenue and fund state spending, he told INA, according to 964media.
Iraq exported 3.3 million to 3.5 million bpd before shipping through the Strait of Hormuz was disrupted in March, 964media reported. The outlet said October’s rate marks a return to prewar levels.
Exports fell from more than 99 million barrels in February to 18.6 million barrels in March, according to Oil Ministry figures cited by 964media. Monthly oil revenue dropped from more than $6.8 billion to about $1.95 billion over the same period.
Oil provides more than 90% of Iraqi government revenue.
Flows through the Ceyhan pipeline are running at about 200,000 to 230,000 bpd, oil expert Ziad al-Hashimi said this month, according to 964media. That means most Iraqi exports are still leaving through Hormuz.
