The Kurdistan region of Iraq and most oil companies operating in the region have signed an agreement in principle to resume crude exports, though the deal still requires approval from the Iraqi Federal Government. 

The Ministry of Natural Resources of the semi-autonomous Kurdish Government confirmed that all but one international company have signed the deal, adding that the implementation could proceed even without the holdout operator's signature, reported Bloomberg. 

The ministry noted that it is awaiting a response from Iraq’s Federal Oil Ministry, while the state oil marketer, SOMO, described the agreement as being in "the final stage".  

Kurdistan Regional Government spokesman Peshwa Hawrami indicated that shipments could commence within 48 hours once a full agreement is reached. 

This deal would represent a significant breakthrough in the ongoing deadlock, enabling the flow of approximately 230,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline, which has been inactive since March 2023, reported Reuters. 

This development comes at a time when the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies continue to increase production, raising expectations of a global supply surplus. 

The negotiations mark the latest development in a saga that has lingered since March 2023, when Turkey halted the pipeline supplies after an arbitration court ordered it to pay Iraq $1.5bn (Tl62.21bn).  

In July, the Kurdistan Regional Government agreed to transfer its oil to SOMO for onward sales, easing its long-running dispute with Baghdad over revenue control. 

Before the halt, the Kurdish region had been producing around 500,000bpd, while Iraq, overall, ships most of its 4.2 million barrels a day from the southern port of Basra.