Iraq's oil minister Ihsan Ismael said the country was seeking an exemption from the Opec+ cuts in the first quarter of next year, according to state-owned news agency Ina.
Iraq has discussed the potential exemption with key producers in the Opec+ group, but will continue to cut production for the remainder of 2020, Ismael said. Saudi oil minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said last month that the Opec+ quotas could run beyond the April 2022 end date.
Iraq has been under mounting pressure from other Opec+ members to improve its compliance with the agreement. It has averaged 74pc in May-July.
Baghdad pledged last month to produce 3.4mn b/d in August and September — 400,000 b/d below its Opec+ ceiling for these months — to compensate for exceeding its limit in May-July. The country's Opec+ quota is 3.8mn b/d in August-December.
Ismael said Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region was part of the overproduction issue, as it continues to export without consulting the federal government. Ismael asked Erbil to limit exports to 370,000 b/d in June, but the region maintained exports at an average 425,000 b/d in June-July.
Iraq's former oil ministers have hoped for an exemption from Opec's quotas since 2016, citing drained revenues from decades of war and economic crises.
The current production limits have further pressured cash-strapped Iraq during its efforts to stabilise the country post-conflict. Protests over a lack of basic services and against a failed political system that has dominated Iraq since 2003 ousted the former government in November 2019, leaving the country in political disarray until May this year.
Iraq depends heavily on income from oil revenues, which have almost halved in January-August compared with a year earlier. Consequently, Baghdad is seeking international financial support and investment in its energy sector to battle the downturn.
