Iraq exported $11.07 billion worth of oil in March, setting a record since 1972, according to preliminary data from the Oil Ministry, with crude prices being driven up notably by the war in Ukraine.
Iraq, OPEC’s second largest exporter, exported “100,563,999 barrels for sales of $11.07 billion (10.02 billion euros), the highest revenue since 1972,” just before the first oil shock in 1973, the ministry said in a statement.
These are preliminary data published Friday evening, “but the final figures do not usually vary or little,” a ministry official who requested anonymity told AFP.
In February, oil revenues had already reached an eight-year high of $8.5 billion (7.7 billion euros) with daily exports of 3.3 million barrels of oil.
Against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, energy prices are trending upwards, while oil-producing countries are limiting their supply.
On Thursday, the 13 members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), led by Riyadh, and their 10 allies led by Moscow (OPEC+) agreed “to adjust upward the total monthly production by 432,000 barrels per day for the month of May.”
On Friday, the price of a barrel was around 100 dollars.
Iraq has huge hydrocarbon reserves and derives 90% of its revenue from oil sales.
The price of oil and oil revenues are crucial data for the Iraqi government in preparing the budget, in a country hit by economic difficulties and still awaiting major infrastructure projects after decades of war.
The country of 41 million people is also experiencing a serious energy crisis on a daily basis. It imports nearly a third of its gas and electricity consumption from Iran, its neighbor and ally, which regularly cuts or reduces its supplies, aggravating the already daily load shedding.
