"I’m confident Kurdistan will soon become an important source of energy for the world’s growing demand,” Barzani said. "We will become a net exporter of gas to the rest of Iraq, Turkey and Europe in the near future and help meet their energy security needs.”
Barzani stated the Kurdistan Region produces and exports about "half a million barrels per day and produces almost half a billion cubic feet of gas per day.”
The prime minister assured an economically independent Kurdistan was not a threat to Baghdad or its neighbors and said the Region has proven its loyalty.
Barzani announced the Region could make up for at least part of the "shortfall of oil” brought on by the war in Ukraine if Baghdad would work with Erbil. He also complained the Region was being hindered from meeting its energy needs and the needs of its partners.
Speaking on the verdict from the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court last month, Barzani called the ruling a "grave injustice.” The court ruled on February 15 Erbil’s independent sale of the Kurdistan Region’s oil and natural gas was against the Iraqi constitution, and asked the KRG to transfer management of oil and gas sales to the federal government.
Barzani said the KRG was in negotiation with the federal government for an agreement "that respects the constitution and our rights.”
The prime minister also spoke of the massive changes in energy use and demand in the Region over the past 15 years, as families in Kurdistan have purchased cars and homes and "public services have penetrated deep in the countryside.”
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