December 2012 and January 2013 saw a large drop in Iraq’s
exports from what were record highs in the previous months. Finally, in
February, foreign shipments were able to recover, while prices went up as well.
Iraq’s oil industry is still at a plateau, which has happened in the last
several years.
Tanker docked in southern Iraq. The southern pipeline
carries the majority of the country’s exports and saw an increased flow in Feb.
2013 (AFP)
The flow through Iraq’s two major pipelines increased in
February 2013. The southern pipeline saw an average of 2.196 million barrels a day in exports, a 103,000 barrel rise from January’s 2.093 million. The
northern line to Turkey went from 264,500 in January to 339,200 in February, up
74,700. That was the highest amount through the south since August’s 2.252
million, and through the north since November’s 426,600. Together that meant
Iraq exported a total average of 2.53 million barrels a day in February
compared to 2.35 million in January. That was a nice recovery since foreign
shipments had dropped dramatically from the end of last year. From September to
November 2012, Iraq achieved its highest exports numbers since the 1990s. They
then went down to 2.3 million barrels a day for December and January. The figures
could have been higher, but the dispute over oil contracts led to another
breakdown between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government. That led the later to stop shipping through the northern pipeline in December. Instead,
the Kurds have been trucking an average of 30,000 barrels a day to Turkey,
something the central government considers illegal. Total production for February was at 2.963 million. That is below the benchmark set by the Oil
Ministry of 3 million barrels a day. The trend for Iraq over the last several
years has been to increase output, then hit a plateau, then up exports, and
then level off again. The country is following that pattern right now. From
2009-2010, Iraq averaged 1.895 million barrels a day in exports. That then
went up to 2.16 million in 2011. In 2013, new terminals opened in Basra that
allowed for a dramatic jump to 2.41 million. Iraq has stayed at that level the
last twelve months.
Iraq Oil Exports And Profits
2011-2013
Month
|
Avg.
Exports
(Mil/
Bar/
Day)
|
Avg. Price Per Barrel
|
Revenue (Bill)
|
Jan. 11
|
2.16
|
$90.78
|
$6.082
|
Feb.
|
2.20
|
$98.44
|
$6.064
|
Mar.
|
2.15
|
$107.13
|
$7.167
|
Apr.
|
2.14
|
$114.26
|
$7.342
|
May
|
2.22
|
$108
|
$7.45
|
Jun.
|
2.27
|
$105.17
|
$7.173
|
Jul.
|
2.16
|
$108.79
|
$7.311
|
Aug.
|
2.18
|
$104.91
|
$7.124
|
Sep.
|
2.10
|
$104.89
|
$6.619
|
Oct.
|
2.08
|
$104.04
|
$6.742
|
Nov.
|
2.13
|
$106.59
|
$6.833
|
Dec.
|
2.14
|
$106.18
|
$7.061
|
2011 Avg.
|
2.16
|
$105.00
|
$6.913
|
Jan. 12
|
2.10
|
$109.08
|
$7.123
|
Feb.
|
2.01
|
$112.92
|
$6.595
|
Mar.
|
2.31
|
$117.99
|
$8.472
|
Apr.
|
2.50
|
$116.79
|
$8.795
|
May
|
2.45
|
$103.03
|
$7.831
|
Jun.
|
2.40
|
$90.09
|
$6.487
|
Jul.
|
2.51
|
$97.14
|
$7.577
|
Aug.
|
2.56
|
$106.22
|
$8.445
|
Sep.
|
2.59
|
$107.59
|
$8.371
|
Oct.
|
2.62
|
$105.51
|
$8.578
|
Nov.
|
2.62
|
$104.32
|
$8.200
|
Dec.
|
2.34
|
$103.72
|
$7.551
|
2012
Avg.
|
2.41
|
$106.20
|
$7.835
|
Jan. 13
|
2.35
|
$104.92
|
$7.672
|
Feb.
|
2.53
|
$107.66
|
$7.644
|
Oil
Exports Through Basra 2012-2013
January 2012 1.711 mil/bar/day
January 2012 1.711 mil/bar/day
February
1.639 mil/bar/day
March 1.917
mil/bar/day
April 2.115
mil/bar/day
May 2.086
mil/bar/day
June 2.085
mil/bar/day
July 2.216
mil/bar/day
August
2.252 mil/bar/day
September 2.178
mil/bar/day
October
2.172 mil/bar/day
November
2.122 mil/bar/day
December
2.022 mil/bar/day
January
2013 2.093 mil/bar/day
February
2.196 mil/bar/day
Oil Exports Through Kirkuk 2012-2013
January 2012
393,500 bar/day
February
375,800 bar/day
March 400,000
bar/day
April
393,300 bar/day
May 364,500
bar/day
June
316,600 bar/day
July
300,000 bar/day
August
312,900 bar/day
September
420,000 bar/day
October
451,600 bar/day
November
426,600 bar/day
December
325,800 bar/day
January
2013 264,500 bar/day
February
339,200 bar/day
Iraq’s Avg. Oil
Exports 2003-2012
2003 0.79 mil/bar/day
2004 1.47 mil/bar/day
2005 1.36 mil/bar/day
2006 1.50 mil/bar/day
2007 1.66 mil/bar/day
2008 1.84 mil/bar/day
2009 1.90 mil/bar/day
2010 1.89 mil/bar/day
2011 2.16 mil/bar/day
2012 2.41 mil/bar/day
Iraq also benefited from an increase in prices for its
petroleum. In February, a barrel of Iraqi crude went for $107.66, compared to
$104.92 the previous month. That earned the country $7.644 billion for the
month, just around the same amount it made in January, $7.672 billion. Since
2011, Iraq has been making over $100 a barrel twenty-two out of twenty-six
months. That’s because of the tensions in the Middle East such as over Iran’s
nuclear program, the Syrian war, and the Arab Spring.
In February, Iraq made a nice recovery after two months of
declining exports. It still has not returned to the record highs it saw at the
end of 2012. It is still making hefty profits since prices have remained high
for the last two years. The nation could see another big jump this year in
exports, because production is increasing slowly, but it has not happened yet.
SOURCES
Agence France Presse, “Iraq oil exports rebound after
two-month lull,” 3/21/13
Associated Press, “Bomb Targets Fuel Oil Pipeline in
Northern Iraq,” 2/20/13
- “Iraq Gives Go-Ahead for Iranian Pipeline to Syria,”
2/20/13
Platts, “Iraq’s February oil output rises marginally to
2.963 million b/d,” 3/27/13
Press TV, “Bombing hits fuel oil pipeline in Iraq: Oil
Ministry,” 2/18/13
Republic of Iraq
Ministry of Oil, “The Iraqi Ministry of Oil Declares its Export for February
2013,” 3/24/13
Reuters, “Iraqi Kurdistan resumes Turkey truck oil exports,”
2/6/13
No comments:
Post a Comment