Kirkuk-Yumurtalık oil pipeline regains its normal flow
Following the re-activation of the Kirkuk- Yumurtalık oil pipeline five days ago, oil transferred through Turkey from oilfields under the control of northern Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has regained its normal flow.
According to data collected by Anadolu Agency from Turkey's Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, the amount of daily oil pumped from Kirkuk to Ceyhan has once again reached 528,000 barrels per day.
Stating that oil flow from Northern Iraq is now going smoothly, ministry officials said: "A 40-inch section of the Kirkuk-Yumurtalık oil pipeline, whose transfer of raw oil had been stopped due to sabotage by the separatist terrorist organization and temporary safety measures, was returned to normal functioning on March 11. The previous day, the flow on the 46-inch section was also normalized. Oil from northern Iraq has been smoothly reaching the facilities in Ceyhan for 24 hours, with a flow of 22,000 barrels per hour."
Regarding allegations that some companies with close ties to Iraq's central government had stopped the oil transfer to Europe through the Kirkuk-Yumurtalık pipeline, Turkish ministry officials said: "The contracts with the companies who stopped the oil transfer have expired. However the collaboration with northern Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government is still ongoing."
On Feb. 27, the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources announced that a portion of the Kirkuk-Yumurtalık Oil Pipeline within the city of İdil was blown up by terrorists and that this act of sabotage against the most important source of revenue for Northern Iraq's KRG posed great obstacles for the wealth and future of the Kurdish people.
Last week, the North Oil Company, which is controlled by the KRG, suspended the shipment of crude oil from reserves in Kirkuk to the southern city of Ceyhan along the Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline. According to information from two sources, the Iraqi central government's Ministry of Oil decided to suspend oil shipments to the pipeline.
A North Oil Company statement submitted to Reuters by an unnamed company official said there were no technical or other faults or breakdowns regarding the oil fields in Kirkuk, but that the decision had been made by the government in Baghdad. Another authority from the KRG also confirmed that the pipeline was not receiving any crude oil from the North Oil Company.
The pipeline is a vital source of revenue for the KRG, and cuts across conflict zones in southeastern Turkey, where security forces are trying to rout PKK terrorists.
According to data collected by Anadolu Agency from Turkey's Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, the amount of daily oil pumped from Kirkuk to Ceyhan has once again reached 528,000 barrels per day.
Stating that oil flow from Northern Iraq is now going smoothly, ministry officials said: "A 40-inch section of the Kirkuk-Yumurtalık oil pipeline, whose transfer of raw oil had been stopped due to sabotage by the separatist terrorist organization and temporary safety measures, was returned to normal functioning on March 11. The previous day, the flow on the 46-inch section was also normalized. Oil from northern Iraq has been smoothly reaching the facilities in Ceyhan for 24 hours, with a flow of 22,000 barrels per hour."
Regarding allegations that some companies with close ties to Iraq's central government had stopped the oil transfer to Europe through the Kirkuk-Yumurtalık pipeline, Turkish ministry officials said: "The contracts with the companies who stopped the oil transfer have expired. However the collaboration with northern Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government is still ongoing."
On Feb. 27, the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources announced that a portion of the Kirkuk-Yumurtalık Oil Pipeline within the city of İdil was blown up by terrorists and that this act of sabotage against the most important source of revenue for Northern Iraq's KRG posed great obstacles for the wealth and future of the Kurdish people.
Last week, the North Oil Company, which is controlled by the KRG, suspended the shipment of crude oil from reserves in Kirkuk to the southern city of Ceyhan along the Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline. According to information from two sources, the Iraqi central government's Ministry of Oil decided to suspend oil shipments to the pipeline.
A North Oil Company statement submitted to Reuters by an unnamed company official said there were no technical or other faults or breakdowns regarding the oil fields in Kirkuk, but that the decision had been made by the government in Baghdad. Another authority from the KRG also confirmed that the pipeline was not receiving any crude oil from the North Oil Company.
The pipeline is a vital source of revenue for the KRG, and cuts across conflict zones in southeastern Turkey, where security forces are trying to rout PKK terrorists.