Turkey allowed Iraq to restart around a fifth of its oil exports yesterday after halting the flow for a day pending the payment of a $100 million debt. Iraq pumps around 430,000 barrels per day (bpd) of its nearly 2 million bpd of oil exports through its northern pipeline to Turkey's Mediterranean port of Ceyhan.
Turkish state pipeline operator Botas ordered the restart to loadings from Ceyhan yesterday after Iraq paid half the debt, a senior Botas source said. «Iraq has an outstanding debt to Turkey long overdue,» the Botas source said. «Yesterday Botas notified Iraq officially that if the debt is not repaid, all loadings will be stopped, and Botas stopped loadings yesterday. After this payment, Botas ordered loadings to start again.»
(KATHIMERINI, 23/07/2008)