IRAQ IS COMMITTED OPEC+

PLATTS - Iraq's new oil minister affirmed the country's commitment to the OPEC+ deal in a phone call with the Saudi energy minister after failing to comply in the first month of the coalition's historic global output cut.

Iraq will stick to its quota in June and July and will make further reductions later on, Ihsan Ismaael said during the phone call, Iraq's oil ministry said in a statement on June 9.

Ismaael said Iraq will comply with its quota despite the economic and financial challenges facing the country, according to the statement.

OPEC and its allies, including Russia, agreed on June 6 to roll over their 9.6 million b/d in collective production cuts through July, to help bolster the market as it emerges from the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Under the deal, Angola, Iraq, Kazakhstan and Nigeria committed to compensate for their lack of compliance in May with extra cuts to put their output below their quotas in July, August and September.

Saudi energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak said during a June 8 press conference that it was too early to say what the quotas would be for August and September. The deal, for now, calls on the 9.6 million b/d cuts to roll back to 7.7 million b/d starting in August.

Iraq's compliance

Prince Abdulaziz said at the conference that the OPEC+ coalition was willing to give Iraq the benefit of the doubt to comply with output cuts. Iraq has consistently exceeded its quotas, with May crude oil production of 4.21 million b/d, far above its quota of 3.59 million b/d. The prince said that Iraq has promised to produce less than its quota in July, August and September to make up for over-production in May.

Iraq's deputy prime minister and finance minister Ali Allawi said on June 7 that the country will seek new rules "to distribute the burden" of OPEC+ cuts, taking into consideration each country's economic conditions and living standards.

He also suggested that the size of the economy and per capita income should also be considered when assigning production cuts.

Iraq has failed for most of the past three years to adhere to its quota following the 2014-2017 war with the Islamic State group that devastated the country.

Since October, Iraq has also been rocked by demonstrations seeking economic and political change. The protests prompted the then-government of Abdel Abdul Mahdi to resign in November and run the country as a caretaker government up until May when the new government of Mustafa al-Kadhimi was appointed.

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