SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The Kurdistan Region insists to reject the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court ruling, deeming the Region’s oil business illegal said the Director of SOMO on Sunday.
Head of Iraqi state-owned organization for marketing oil (SOMO) Alaa al-Yassiri told a semi-official newspaper that the Kurdistan Region is still insisting on not abiding by the Federal Court ruling.
“The Region keep exporting oil illegally,” al-Yassiri said, adding, “We have no negotiation with the Region because they clearly reject the ruling.”
Authorities in Iraq, Oil Ministry, have made fresh attempts since early 2022 to control the Kurdistan Region’s oil revenue, where they developing oil and gas resources independently of the federal government.
In 2007 the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) enacted its own law that established the directives by which the region would administer them.
In February, Iraq’s federal court deemed the oil and gas law regulating the oil industry in Kurdistan unconstitutional and demanded that the (KRG) hand over their crude supplies. But repeatedly rejected.
Iraq has made several bids to enforce the February court ruling. It has summoned several firms operating in the Kurdistan region to commercial court sittings, which have been repeatedly postponed, and introduced a policy to blacklist oilfield service firms if they did not withdraw from the Kurdistan region.
The latest blacklisted oilfield services firms include Weatherford International and Dubai-based OIL SERV, according to SOMO.
