KRG defends gas deals as constitutional amid Baghdad opposition

Iraq’s oil ministry on Tuesday strongly criticized the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) recent energy deals with US gas firms, labelling them a “blatant violation of Iraqi law.” The agreements, overseen by the Kurdistan Region’s Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, are valued at a combined $110 billion over their lifetimes and are part of Erbil’s broader push to achieve round-the-clock electricity.

In a statement, Baghdad’s oil ministry said that while “Iraq is keen on maximizing gas investment and meeting domestic requirements for power generation, the measures taken by the Kurdistan Regional Government constitute a clear violation of Iraqi law.”

The ministry emphasized that “oil resources are considered the property of all Iraqi people, and any investment procedures involving these resources must go through the Federal Government in Baghdad.” It further declared that it “confirms the nullity of these contracts based on the Iraqi Constitution and rulings by the Federal Supreme Court.”

In response, the KRG’s natural resources ministry promptly issued a statement defending the deals and emphasizing Erbil’s “constitutional rights and authorities as a federal entity under the permanent Constitution of Iraq.”

The ministry stressed that these contracts had already been upheld by Iraqi courts as legal and valid, and that “no legal dispute exists regarding them.” The recent changes, it explained, were limited to the operating companies, in accordance with the legal and contractual terms of the original agreements.

“Both American companies have been active in the Kurdistan Region for many years and are among its primary oil producers. They are not new investors,” the statement asserted.

The KRG ministry further emphasized that the primary goal of these agreements is “to increase domestic natural gas production to meet the fuel needs of power generation stations, with the aim of delivering uninterrupted electricity to all parts of Iraq.”

On Monday, PM Barzani praised the signing of the “multibillion-dollar deals” with the US-based energy firms, describing them as a sign of “Kurdistan’s commitment to peace and progress through economic development.” His remarks came after arriving in Washington on Saturday for discussions on energy cooperation and regional developments, according to a KRG statement.

Meanwhile, HKN Energy and ONEX Group announced in a joint statement on Sunday that they had signed a binding term sheet with the KRG to develop the Miran Gas Field through their newly formed joint venture, Miran Energy.

Another deal was signed with WesternZagros, granting the company rights to develop the Topkhana-Kurdamir block in southwest Sulaimani province for oil and gas production.

HKN Energy has a 62 percent share of the Sarsang block in the Kurdistan Region's Duhok province. While WesternZagros, according to its website, is the operator of the Kurdamir block with an 80 percent working interest and holds a 40 percent non-operated interest in the Garmiyan block in the southeast of Sulaimani province.

The new agreements with the US-based firms were signed at the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington.

PM Barzani emphasized the longstanding contributions of both companies, stating, “HKN and WesternZagros have contributed a lot to Kurdistan, to our people, and have brought benefits not only to us but to all of Iraq.”

(Source:Rudaw)