Kurdistan Oil Exports Resume via Iraq–Turkey Pipeline as IOCs Load First Ceyhan Cargoes

Kurdistan’s crude exports through the Iraq–Turkey pipeline continue to ramp up as international oil companies load their first cargoes at Turkey’s Ceyhan terminal, with Iraq planning 250,000 bpd in November shipments.

(Reuters) — International oil companies in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region have loaded their first export cargo from Turkey's Ceyhan terminal, Gulf Keystone Petroleum said on Nov. 17.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum said in a statement it expects payment for its share of the first cargo within 30 days and anticipates the second lifting at the end of November.

Its London-listed shares were up 3.6% by 0840 GMT.

After a two-and-a-half year hiatus, Iraq resumed oil exports from Kurdistan to Ceyhan via pipeline in late September under an interim deal that compensates producers with a share of their crude deliveries to Iraqi national company SOMO.

The restart deal involves eight IOCs, including Shamaran Petroleum SNM.V and U.S.-based HKN Energy and Hunt Oil.

Norway's DNO, Kurdistan's largest producer, did not join and continues to sell oil to local traders for cash.

Iraq plans to load 250,000 barrels per day of Kirkuk crude from Ceyhan in November across 12 cargoes, a loading program seen by Reuters shows, an 86% increase from the previous month.