Iraq has reduced its crude oil exports to approximately 3.3 million barrels per day in August, a move aimed at enhancing compliance with OPEC+ supply cuts.

This represents a decrease from 3.48 million barrels in July and 3.41 million barrels in June.

The Iraqi oil ministry announced plans to maintain these reduced export levels in the coming months to offset overproduction and overexporting earlier in the year.

Meanwhile, OPEC+ has decided to delay a planned partial rollback of production cuts by two months due to falling international oil prices and a lack of bullish factors indicating a potential reversal in the trend.

Iraq, as the second-largest producer in OPEC, has a history of struggling to adhere to production control agreements within the cartel. This is primarily attributed to its heavy reliance on oil revenues to fund government operations.

In an effort to attract more investment to its energy sector, the Iraqi government has transitioned from technical service contracts to profit-sharing agreements for oil and gas investments. The profit-sharing model offers foreign investors a share of revenue after deducting royalty and cost recovery expenses, making it more attractive compared to the traditional flat-rate approach of technical service contracts.

Foreign firms operating in Iraq have expressed concerns about the limitations of technical service contracts, particularly during periods of rising international oil prices and costs. The profit-sharing agreements are expected to address these concerns and incentivize greater foreign investment in Iraq's energy sector. (ILKHA)