Iraq’s crude oil exports averaged 2.876 million barrels per day in October, up nearly 10 per cent from the previous month, the country’s oil ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
Exports from Opec’s second-largest producer generated about $3.431 billion last month, based on an average price of $38.48 per barrel.
Daily oil exports in September averaged 2.613 million barrels, bringing that month’s revenues to about $3.17 billion at an average price of $40.477. The last month’s increase is due to the fact that October is a day longer than the month prior to that.
Iraq - which holds about 153.1 billion barrels of oil - is highly reliant on crude revenues, which make up nearly 95 per cent of its income.
Lower oil prices and the coronavirus pandemic have further pressured the public revenues. The country’s earnings so far this year stand at around $34.072 billion, Oil Ministry figures show. That is nearly 50 per cent lesser than what Iraqis projected when they drafted this year’s budget, according to this year draft budget.
Declining revenues have also left the government struggling to find funds to pay salaries to its bloated public sector while forcing it to halt work on projects. Iraq needs around $7 billion a month, of those about $5 billion just for salaries and pensions, according to the country’s Finance Ministry.
In June, the parliament endorsed a law allowing the government to borrow $5 billion from international lenders and 15 trillion Iraqi Dinar (about $12.7 billion) from local banks.
By September, the government ran out of money, leading to a delay in salaries again. Iraq is now asking the parliament to endorse another borrowing law to secure resources for the rest of the year as it foresees a cash crunch.
According to the Iraqi Oil Ministry’s estimates, oil revenues for the last quarter of the year will not exceed $12.7 billion, which is much below the $49 billion that is needed for paying salaries and other commitments.
