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Over $800 million from Iraqi Kurdistan oil revenue missing since July 15
August 18, 2015
A worker adjusts a valve of an oil pipe at Taq Taq oil field in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan. Photo: Reuters
ERBIL-Hewler, Kurdistan region ‘Iraq’,— Over $800 million in oil revenue has been missing since July 15 according to the Committee of Finance and Economic Affairs in Iraqi Kurdistan Parliament.
Committee deputy Ali Hama Salih told NRT on Sunday that the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) has yet to deposit the funds into the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) finance ministry bank account.
“The money should have been deposited in the Finance and Economic Ministry account since July 15, $200 million for each week, but the money hasn’t been deposited yet,” Salih said.
Salih called on President Masoud Barzani and KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani to launch a serious investigation into the missing money.
He also said that the missing funds are not related to a reported break in productivity of the Kurdistan-Ceyhan pipeline after PKK fighters attacked it in late July.
The MNR released a statement on August 2, saying the Kurdistan Region had lost up to $250 million in potential oil revenue as a result of the “repeated attempted thefts and sabotage attacks on the pipelines that carry crude oil from the Kurdistan Region to Ceyhan in Turkey.”
The Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline has a maximum operational capacity of 400,000 barrels per day, but current flows are around 300,000 barrels per day due to attacks on the pipeline, which frequently disrupt the operation.
Many Kurdish politicians and Observers believe that many of the oil industry projects in Iraqi Kurdistan are conducted in a non-transparent way. Some have even described them as secretive.
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August 18, 2015
A worker adjusts a valve of an oil pipe at Taq Taq oil field in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan. Photo: Reuters
ERBIL-Hewler, Kurdistan region ‘Iraq’,— Over $800 million in oil revenue has been missing since July 15 according to the Committee of Finance and Economic Affairs in Iraqi Kurdistan Parliament.
Committee deputy Ali Hama Salih told NRT on Sunday that the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) has yet to deposit the funds into the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) finance ministry bank account.
“The money should have been deposited in the Finance and Economic Ministry account since July 15, $200 million for each week, but the money hasn’t been deposited yet,” Salih said.
Salih called on President Masoud Barzani and KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani to launch a serious investigation into the missing money.
He also said that the missing funds are not related to a reported break in productivity of the Kurdistan-Ceyhan pipeline after PKK fighters attacked it in late July.
The MNR released a statement on August 2, saying the Kurdistan Region had lost up to $250 million in potential oil revenue as a result of the “repeated attempted thefts and sabotage attacks on the pipelines that carry crude oil from the Kurdistan Region to Ceyhan in Turkey.”
The Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline has a maximum operational capacity of 400,000 barrels per day, but current flows are around 300,000 barrels per day due to attacks on the pipeline, which frequently disrupt the operation.
Many Kurdish politicians and Observers believe that many of the oil industry projects in Iraqi Kurdistan are conducted in a non-transparent way. Some have even described them as secretive.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
