Archive Latest News - Think Tank - 01/01/08 - 14/04/08

Iraq resumes pumping Kirkuk oil to Turkey

A source at the shipping industry said last Thursday that Iraq resumed pumping Kirkuk crude oil at the rate of about 72 thousand barrels a day through the northern pipeline to Turkey. The stocks of Iraqi crude in the Turkish port of Ceyhan on the Mediterranean hit six million barrels. However, the source did not specify when the pumping was resumed through the pipeline. The pumping of oil was stopped on Sunday because the storage tanks were full.

Iraq resumes pumping Kirkuk oil to Turkey

Govt. opposition secretly meet in Britain ahead of Iraq conference

Representatives of the Iraqi opposition have been secretly meeting in the British city of Leeds for two days in preparation for an upcoming conference on Iraq in the Egyptian capital Cairo, informed political sources said on Monday. :eek:

The majority of the participants at the meetings were Sunni Arabs from six opposition groups, including Sataam al-Kaoud, an owner of several successful companies in Jordan who is currently residing in Morocco, in addition to members from the Sunni Iraqi Accordance Front (IAF), the international al-Sharq al-Awsat newspaper said in its Monday issue quoting unidentified sources.

Three meetings have been held thus far in an attempt to adopt a unified stance and platform ahead of the Cairo-based conference on Iraq, the newspaper wrote quoting the same sources, providing no information about the scheduled date for the conference.

Claiming that the British government has played a prominent role in organizing the meetings, the sources said that Britain will keep itself involved in Iraqi affairs even after withdrawing its troops from the country. :nono:

Meanwhile, British Foreign Office Spokesman Barry Marston denied any knowledge of the meetings during a phone call with the newspaper.:ro_emote:

In late December 2007, sources from the Iraqi parliament's Committee on Reconciliation and National Dialogue spoke of a conference on Iraq in the Egyptian capital, which they said is expected to tackle three main issues: federalism, power sharing and the presence of foreign forces in the country.

Aswat Aliraq

Major fire spreads at Iraq's biggest oil refinery

An explosion at a fuel storage tank caused a huge blaze at Iraq's largest refinery on Monday, injuring at least 36 workers, and the fire was spreading, witnesses said.

A Reuters cameraman at the Baiji refinery complex, some 180 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad, said he had seen at least one dead body and had counted at least 36 others suffering from burns.

"This is the biggest fire I have ever seen at Baiji refinery. We have not had a fire like this before," said an engineer, employed at the plant since 2003, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

He said the explosion had started in a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) unit.
Dozens of firefighting trucks converged on the scene from neighboring towns.

The engineer said the fire was spreading after an initial explosion at a storage tank containing 5 million liters of fuel.

A second engineer said a technical fault had started the fire.

The refineries at Baiji in north-central Iraq have capacity of 310,000 barrels a day, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, and have been operating at less than full capacity due to power cuts and other problems including fires.

In January 2007, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh said the country was losing $1.5 billion annually from attacks and theft at Baiji, which is vital to the nation's economy.

The internal pipeline taking crude oil from Iraq's northern Kirkuk oilfields to the refinery has also been prone to attacks by militants seeking to disrupt the flow of oil.

Major fire spreads at Iraq's biggest oil refinery - Yahoo! News

Update......

Firefighters bring Iraq oil refinery fire under control

Firefighters have succeeded in bringing a blaze at Iraq's largest oil refinery in Baiji under control, an engineer at the refinery said.

"There was no sabotage. It was caused by a technical fault," said the engineer, who declined to be named.

Firefighters bring Iraq oil refinery fire under control | Markets | Reuters&

Update.......

Iraq's Largest Oil Refinery Suspends Production After Fire

Iraq's largest oil refinery in the northern town of Beiji has been shut down after a fire broke out, an official said Monday.

"Causes of the explosion and the fire aren't known yet," Assem Jihad told Dow Jones Newswires by telephone from Baghdad. Jihad expected the fire to take some days before it could be put out.

Ten people suffered burns injuries, police and an engineer at the refinery said.

The fire broke out at about 1400 local time in a production unit that had recently undergone maintenance work, the engineer and the police officer said.

Jihad said the explosion has started in a liquefied petroleum gas unit.

Engineers said maintenance work had been carried out on units producing liquid gas and petrol, and the blaze was believed to have been caused by a technical problem as one unit began operating again.
Firefighters were on the scene, police said.

Iraq suffers from an acute shortage of oil products and it currently imports more than half of its fuel needs.

Beiji also serves as a key transfer point for crude oil being exported out of Iraq through the Turkish port of Ceyhan. Crude produced by northern oil fields is usually pumped to Beiji and the extra crude is pumped to Ceyhan for exports.

Beiji refinery has a capacity of 300,000 barrels a day, according to Iraqi oil officials, but has been operating at less than its half capacity due to acts of sabotage against pipelines feeding it with crude oil.

Nasdaq 100 Flash Quotes

JAPEX Helping Iraq Survey Key Oil Field In South Official

Oil and gas developer Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. Ltd. (JAPEX) is helping Iraq carry out seismic surveys a prized oil field in the south, a senior Iraqi oil official said Monday.

JAPEX is providing remote supervision to an Iraqi 3D seismic survey team to survey the Gharraf oil field in Nassiriya province, which has a preliminary estimated reserve of 1.1 billion barrels.

JAPEX has supplied the team with more than $10 million of equipment and has provided up-to-date training to its members in Japan and France, the official said. The Japanese company is providing these equipment and assistant to the Iraqi Oil Ministry free of charge, he said.

The team has already started seismic surveys in the field and is expected to finish work in four to five months, he said. The team will also survey other Iraqi oil fields, he said without naming them.

Gharraf, one of Iraq's untapped oil fields, is expected to produce up to 150, 000 barrels a day when it is developed, the official said. Iraq currently produces around 2.4 million barrels a day and plans to reach 3 million barrels a day by the end of 2008.

Nasdaq 100 Flash Quotes

2007 Great Year for Iraq’s Finances, Foreign Debt and Unemployment Down - Ministry of Finance

An official source in Iraq’s Ministry of Finance has said that the stability of the security conditions in the past few months has had dramatic impact on the economy, saying that 2007 was a solid year for economic developments, with Iraq’s foreign debts down by 80% and unemployment down to 16%.

Noozz.com | IRAQ

I will see if I can find out more on this later when more information comes out.

AP Interview: Iraq's Kurdish deputy premier warns of strife over Kirkuk

Iraq's Kurdish deputy prime minister warned Monday that failure to resolve the fate of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk could result in more strife and accused people within the government of blocking a solution.

''We have a choice,'' Barham Saleh told The Associated Press. ''We can either turn Kirkuk into an example of national Iraqi unity ... or turn it into a battlefield for strife between the components of Iraq.''

A referendum is expected later this year on whether Kirkuk will join the semiautonomous Kurdish zone to its north, or continue to be ruled by Baghdad.

Saleh said it was unacceptable to leave the dispute unresolved and accused unnamed people within the government of Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki of trying to stymie a solution spelled out in the 2005 constitution.

''I am a Kurd and see Kirkuk as part of the Kurdish region,'' Saleh said, explaining that because Arabs and Turkomen - the other two main ethnic groups inhabiting the city - see it differently, the issue must be resolved under current law.

Kirkuk's Arab and Turkomen residents dispute the Kurdish claim to the city, which has over the past 4 years seen hundreds of deadly attacks with sectarian or ethnic motives.

Leaders of Iraq's Shiite majority fear allowing Kirkuk to join the Kurdish region could undermine their new status as the country's dominant power, while the once-dominant Sunni Arab minority sees the loss of the city as a prelude to the breakup of the nation along sectarian or ethnic lines.

Saleh, like President Jalal Talabani, is widely viewed as a moderate Kurd and his assertion that Kirkuk is part of the Kurdish region reflects a universal conviction among Kurds. But his charge that government parties were working against a solution in Kirkuk reflects tension between the Kurds and their close Shiite allies.

The Kurds and Shiites, who combine for about 80 percent of Iraq's population, have been close allies since Saddam's ouster in 2003, but recent Kurdish assertions of independence, like the conclusion of oil exploration deals with foreign companies, without involving the central government, have led to harsh public exchanges.

The constitution, which most of Iraq's Sunni Arabs voted against in a 2005 referendum, provides for the ''normalization'' of Kirkuk - allowing Kurds forcibly moved from the city under Saddam Hussein's ''Arabization'' program to return and inviting Arabs lured there decades ago by financial reward to leave in return for compensation.

Santa Barbara News-Press

Iraq to ask UNSC to reduce compensations paid to Kuwait to one percent

Iraq will ask the UN Security Council (UNSC) to reduce from five to one percent the amount of compensatons paid by the Iraqi government, from oil revenues, to the State of Kuwait for damages caused by the 1990-91 Iraqi invasion of the North Gulf state.

Finance Minister Baqer Al-Zubaidi, addressing a special parliamentary session, said this issue was discussed by Iraqi and Kuwaiti officials.

"This issue was discussed with attendance of President of the Republic (of Iraq) Jalal Talabani with officials in Kuwait," he said.

"Iraq will submit a request to the Security Council to reduce the percentage to one instead of five of the value of sold oil," Zubaidi told the lawmakers.

He did not elaborate on the issue.

The UNSC informed the Iraqi government on December 14 last year the compensations' issue was under the jurisdiction of the Geneva-based UN Compensation Commission (UNCC).

كونا : Iraq to ask UNSC to reduce compensations paid to Kuwait to one percent - الشؤون السياسية - 07/01/2008

Kurdistan Region's achievements and crises in 2007

In this year (2007) the president of Israel suggested that the Iraqi Kurdistan would develop their federalism and declare independence. The political authority in Kurdistan rejected this suggestion with thanks.

The history of relationship between the Kurds of north Iraq and Israeli state goes back to the 1960s in the last century.

In the new history of Iraq in which the position of Kurdistan region is strengthened, increasingly reports are published which refer to the security, political and economic relations between the Kurds and Israel. Training Kurdish commandos and the activities of Israeli intelligence in north Iraq and strong commercial relations between the Israeli businessmen and the region, and more importantly the plan for the transport the oil of Kirkuk to the Israeli port of Haifa through Jordan are some issues that have been reported so far and have neither been confirmed [by relevant authorities] or denied.

Big Israeli businessmen are also active in the Kurdish regions of Turkey and Iran. Purchasing of land in these regions show the significance that Israel is giving to the region and also a reason for concern for those countries in which the Kurds represent a minority nation.

Iran relates the attraction of Israel to the region to some security and political motives. Political experts believe that the strengthening of the Israeli influence in the region through broadening the geographical base of that influence from Jordan to north Iraq allows Israel to have a control Iran’s ‘security belt’ and eliminate the strength points of the four countries of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria by [gaining ability] to instigate the Kurds of Mahabad, Qamishlu, Diyarbekir and Kirkuk. These [Iranian experts] believe that this is a long-term Israeli strategy that it applies to put pressure on these countries.

But the participation of the Israeli intelligence aircraft in discovering the bases of Kurdistan Workers’ Party {PKK) in Qandil and its support to Turkey for the killing of the PKK guerrillas and the support of the US for these attacks, can be read as a change in the foreign policy of Tel Ebib and Washington in 2007. This is something that Kurdistan region must try to find out its reasons.

2007 was a very political year. In the past year Kurdistan region dealt with some sensitive changes: strengthening of a joint capital [for the region], acting for the formation of a united [Kurdistan regional] government, the opening of the UN office and a number of consulates in Arbil, acting towards the development of the investment sector and attracting foreign capital and working towards the institutionalization of government and removing the control of parties in it, are some of these important changes. At the same time at the level of Kurdistan region, the level of corruption in the region was rising, there was shortfall in the budget, and hastiness in trying to exploit the oil sector, the reappearance of the phenomenon of the migration of the young people, the reduction in services and increase in inflation.

At the level of Iraq, [the main events were]: trying to strengthen relationship with the Higher Islamic Council and Shia coalition, building relations with the Sunni Arab Sheikhs and the Islamic Iraqi Party, and continuous contact and communication with the Americans and the British for dealing with the crises of Kirkuk and oil and natural resources.

At the regional level, there were efforts to reconstruct the relations with Iran, Turkey and Egypt and plans for visiting Syria. At the same time the region faced up to the attacks by al-Qaida and Ansar al-Islam and organized the military force of “border guards”. The political parties in Kurdistan region were organized by a “higher committee of the political parties of Kurdistan region.” These can be considered as the most important achievements of the region last year.

What is important for 2008 is the necessity of putting a limit to bureaucracy and corruption in the region in 2008. Financial and administrative accountability must be strengthened by law. Before drawing up and deciding the budget of the region, the political parties must be distanced from the government and the higher commission of political parties must become more active. A proactive diplomatic agency must be established.

At the Iraqi level, Kurdistan region must keep a balance in its relations with the Sunnis and the Shias and must not forget that without the support of the Shia there would be no federalism and without the support of the Sunni’s Kirkuk cannot be returned to Kurdistan region.

At regional level, the national security of neighbours must be respected and economic relations with them need to be strengthened. Finally Kurdistan region must not ignore the US and Israel and investigate the reasons for the change of their position in relation to the region.

Kurdistan Region's achievements and crises in 2007 | Iraq Updates

Iran ready to boost Iraq trade ties

Iran's Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance Davud Danesh-Jafari says expansion of economic ties between Iran and Iraq will benefit the two countries, PressTV reported.

Speaking at a one-day-conference on the study of chances and challenges of Iran-Iraq oil, gas and petrochemical industries in Tehran, Danesh-Jafari expressed Iran's readiness to bolster economic cooperation with Iraq.

?Developing cooperation and discovering the economic advantages of Iran and Iraq would be to the benefit of the government,? said Danesh-Jafari.

The minister said Iran is ready to share its technical knowledge and experiences in oil, gas and petrochemical fields with Iraq.

Iran ready to boost Iraq trade ties | Iraq Updates

Barham Salih: 2008 is Turning Point for Economic Growth in Iraq

The Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister, Barham Salih, asserted that the Iraqi government doesn’t intend to nullify foodstuff coupon as some of the Iraqi officials talked about.

Barham Salih stated that the government has a strategic perspective to rehabilitation and economic development processes which is taken into formulating the 2008 budget.

Participating in a special session of the Iraqi parliament concerning 2008 budget, the Iraqi deputy prime minister stated “The foodstuff coupon keeps as it is, since remaining of the coupon is a moral and political duty and it should be fairly managed.”

“The final account of 2007 budget has not finished yet. It’s figured out that only 60 percent of investment budget has been spent so far which is a great failure.” He added.

In response to the complaints raised by some Iraqi MPs regarding allocating 17 percent of the Iraqi budget to Kurdistan region, Barham Salih said “The allocation of 17 percent of the Iraqi government to Kurdistan region is less than the 13 percent already allocated to Kurdistan region in oil-for-food program.”

PUKmedia :: English - Barham Salih: 2008 is Turning Point for Economic Growth in Iraq

Update.......

Blaze in Beiji oil Refinery killed one Worker and injured 36 others

PUKmedia 2008-01-07 19:25:12
http://pukmedia.com/english/images/s...finery7777.pngThe conflagration which broke out today in Beiji oil refinery resulted in killing a worker and injuring 36 others. As reported by a Reuters’ cameraman who was on the scene.

An engineer from the refinery said that the blaze, which was caused by technical fault, controlled.

PUKmedia :: English - Blaze in Beiji oil Refinery killed one Worker and injured 36 others

Complete failure in Mosul, Kirkuk, Baiji generators

The spokesman for the Electricity Ministry said on Monday that Mosul, Kirkuk, and Baiji generators have completely stopped due to a technical failure in Ugail oil field in Kirkuk three days ago.

"A technical failure hit the oil field three days ago, suspending the gas, which feeds the northern generators," Aziz al-Shemri told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

"Fixing the failure in the oil field will take an unspecified amount of time by the Ministry's technicians," he added.

"The failure in the generators contributed in knocking out electricity in Kirkuk, Baiji, and Mosul," al-Shemri explained.

"The Iraqi network lost a total of 500 MW because of the suspense in the Turkish-Iraqi line three days ago due to maintenance works on the Turkish side, which led to the loss of about 200 MW," he also said.

Aswat Aliraq

Pumping Kirkuk oil to Turkey's Ceyhan resumed - sources

Pumping oil from the northern fields in Kirkuk to the Turkish port of Ceyhan resumed on Monday night after one week of suspension, a source from the North Oil company said.

"The resumption came with a production capacity ranges between 100,000-200,000 barrels per day," the source, requested anonymity, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

"The operation came after empting the oil tanks in Turkish port through selling amounts of the Iraqi crude oil," he added.

He did not provide further details. Exporting the Iraqi oil from the northern fields suffers some difficulties because of the attacks on oil pipelines by armed groups, causing tremendous losses, while the Iraqi government exports the biggest amount of the oil from the southern ports in Basra.

Kirkuk is located 250 km northeast of Baghdad.

Aswat Aliraq

Oil production resumes in Baiji refinery-Oil Ministry

Baiji oil refinery resumed with capacity exceeding (200) thousand barrels of petroleum products per day after extinguishing the fire that ignited due to a technical failure on Monday, an Oil Ministry official said.

“Production resumed in the refinery production units by operating the units that were halted for precautionary reasons while the refinery was on fire”, Ahmed al-Shamaa, deputy oil minister told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

He added “the fire did not affect the refinery’s production, one of the biggest refineries in Iraq.”

Al-Shammaa noted “the technical and engineering teams, as well as fire-fighting brigades, quickly brought the fire in the liquefied gas unit under control and eliminated its effects.”

“Production in the higher levels left high reserves in storage, and the refinery was not affected by the accidental fire, and resumed the delivery of oil products to reservoirs and stations,” the oil official pointed out.

Earlier, an oil refinery source said an employee was killed and 15 others were wounded when a huge fire erupted in the liquefied gas unit at Baiji refinery.

Elsewhere, oil ministry spokesman Assim Jihad said the Oil Ministry ordered the oil products distributing company to deliver an extra 100 liters of kerosene for each family in the winter share after distributing 200 liters last two months.

He added that the planned distribution of the 100 liters, according to each individual family’s ration card, began in January.

Aswat Aliraq

Al-Hashimi Arrives Kuwait

Dr. Tariq al-Hashimi, Iraqi Vice President arrived yesterday in Kuwait heading an official delegation in an official visit for two days. The delegation includes: representatives from Iraqi Accord Front and the Unified Iraqi Alliance, Mr. Rafea al-Esawi a former Minister, Mr. Muhammad Khalid head of Aid organizations, Mr. Abdul al-Kareem the director of Sunni Endowment in Basra, Dr. Farah al-Saraj the head of Women Office and a number of Iraqi MPs.

The Delegation was received by Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmed al-Jabir the Heir Apparent, Mr. Jassem al-Khuraffy the head of Parliament and a number of Officials in the Kuwaiti State and Government. It’s expected the Delegation to meet Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah the Prince of Kuwait and other political and official figures to discuss issues concerning Economic affair.

PUKmedia :: English - Al-Hashimi Arrives Kuwait

Demand for the dollar down in daily auction

Demand for the dollar went down in the Iraqi Central Bank's auction on Tuesday, registering at $124.760 million compared to $142.760 million on Monday.

"The demand hit $12.880 million in cash and $111.880 million in money transfers outside the country, all covered by the bank at a stable exchange rate of 1,215 Iraqi dinars per dollar, unchanged for the fourth consecutive session," according to the central bank's daily bulletin which was received by the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

The 16 banks participating in the auction offered to sell $1.500 million, which the bank bought at an exchange rate of 1,213 Iraqi dinars per dollar.

Speaking to VOI, Ali al-Yasseri, an Iraqi trader, said that despite the decline in the demand for the dollar for the third session in a row, the overall demand is still above average. "The record demand during Thursday's session made other demands seem comparatively low," al-Yasseri explained.

Demand for the dollar was at a record high in the Iraqi Central Bank's auction on Thursday, reaching $181.280 million, the highest in its history.

The Iraqi Central Bank runs a daily auction from Sunday to Thursday.

Aswat Aliraq

Al-Shahristani cannot Cancel the Oil Contracts: Kurdish Deputy

Bayazed Hassan, the MP from the Kurdistani Alliance Bloc and member in the Oil and Gas Committee said that he thinks that there is a personal problem between the Federal Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahristani and his counterpart in Kurdistan Region Government Ashti Hawrami.

In an interview with Radio Sawa, Bayazed said “al-Shahristani has no right to cancel the Oil investments contracts signed by KRG and the foreign companies. He has no authority to do this, because the Article 141 of the Iraqi Constitution gave the right to Kurdistan Parliament to sign contracts and consider it legal, unless it is canceled by the MPs.”

In a private statement to PUKmedia website, al-Shahristani said that he is ready to visit Kurdistan Region and explain his Ministry attitude about these contracts.

PUKmedia :: English - Al-Shahristani cannot Cancel the Oil Contracts: Kurdish Deputy

President Talabani: We are Doing Our Best to Implement Article 140

Mr. Jalal Talabani, PUK Secretary General met today, with a number of Kurdistan Region Ministers, MPs and PUK members in the politburo’s meeting hall in Sulaimany.

Mala Bakhtiyar PUK Politburo Spokesman, talked about the meetings of Leadership Committee, PUK and DPK Politburos and Mr. Jalal Talabani’s one with the members of PUK organizational centers.

President Jalal Talabani talked about current political situation in Iraq, the Kurds role in al Maliki Government and both Kurdish Parties relations with other political sides he said “In general, Kurds relations with other Iraqi parties are good “he also described the Triple agreement between PUK, DPK and the Iraqi Islamic Party as “A crucial agreement”.

“Obstacles are many, yet Kurds has signed UN project, implementing this project will be for their own interest, we are spending our best efforts to implement this Article.” President Jalal Talabani said concerning Article 140.

Regarding KRG, President Talabani said “We are satisfied with the performance of Nichervan Barzani Government, we demand it to activate the services especially electricity, water and pavement”. Then the attendees presented their suggestions about these issues, which were answered in detail by President Talabani.

PUKmedia :: English - President Talabani: We are Doing Our Best to Implement Article 140

Sunni cleric says Sahwa Councils like al-Qaeda, warns of marginalizing Iraq

A Sunni cleric said there was a "similarity" between the actions of the al-Qaeda Organization in Iraq and those of the tribal Sahwa (Awakening) Councils, warning that the marginalization of Iraq would cause other countries to become marginalized.

"Many of those who have joined the Sahwa Councils have been members in al-Qaeda. They joined al-Qaeda in the first place for the sake of money, and when more money became available in a different direction, they rushed to it," Sheikh Harith al-Dari, the head of the Sunni Association of Muslim Scholars (AMS), said in an interview with the al-Hayat International newspaper's Saudi edition in Riyadh, published on Tuesday.

Dari, whose AMS represents a large sector of Arab Sunnis in Iraq and rejects the current political process in the country, said there were Sunni politicians, who are part of the political process, involved in these Sahwa Councils.

Iraq has witnessed in the year 2007 the emergence of armed organizations set up by tribes in most hotspots in the country with the aim of fighting al-Qaeda network operatives in those areas.

It all started in September 2006 with the formation of al-Anbar Awakening Council, which managed to flush al-Qaeda out of the predominantly Sunni province, once considered one of the tensest in Iraq.

Dari, during the interview published over two episodes, said it is true that al-Qaeda has been involved in unacceptable activities with the residents of the region where it existed, but the Sahwa Councils are doing just the same: blackmailing and intimidation.

"Iraq is a part of the Arab nation that came under a serious conspiracy that cut Iraq from its big nation," Dari said, adding "the enemies of Iraq wanted to have a model to be cloned in other areas."

He said there were parties that would benefit from the division of Iraq, a gouge of balance between Arabs and Iran on one hand and Arabs and Israel on the other.

Dari accused the former U.S. ambassador in Baghdad, Zalmay Khalilzad, of "enfeebling Iraq as he was in charge of the opposition file in coordination with Iran."

"The chess pawns offered themselves to cooperate with the occupation forces using the sectarian quota card," Dari said.

Aswat Aliraq

High-level Kurdish delegation to visit Baghdad soon

A high-level delegation from the Iraqi Kurdistan region's government will head to the Iraqi capital Baghdad within the next few weeks to resume discussing some pending issues with the central government, an official Kurdish source said on Tuesday.

The delegation "will visit Baghdad to deal with the issues of oil contracts, article 140 of the Iraqi Constitution, the budget allocated for the Kurdistan region within the state budget for the year 2008, and the Kurdish peshmerga forces," the region's spokesman, Jamal Abdullah, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

A high-ranking Kurdish delegation under the region's prime minister, Nejervan al-Barazani, had discussed with the central government in Baghdad oil contracts and funds allocated for the region from the state budget as well as the funds for the peshmerga forces from the Iraqi Defense Ministry's budget and article 140 of the Constitution.

The Iraqi government has criticized the contracts concluded by Kurdistan with foreign companies to prospect for oil and considered them as "null and void."

Kurdish officials said the Iraqi government did not honor its agreement with the province to include the peshmerga forces into the Baghdad Defense Ministry's financial appropriations.

The peshmerga is the name referring to the armed Kurdish militias that fought the former Iraqi regime (of Saddam Hussein). However, after the Saddam regime withdrew his forces from the three Kurdistan provinces of Arbil, Sulaimaniya, and Duhuk in 1992, the militias turned into semi-regular forces to protect the Kurdistan region and set up two ministries for their fighters in the region's autonomous cabinet in 2006.

According to article 140 of the Iraqi Constitution, the problem of disputed areas should be solved over three stages: normalization, to be followed by a census and then a referendum among the inhabitants on whether they want to have Kirkuk as an independent province or have it annexed to the Kurdistan region.

These stages should have been finalized by December 31, 2007 but were postponed for a period of six months.

Aswat Aliraq

Parliament postpones vote on accountability, justice law

The Iraqi parliament met on Tuesday under the chairmanship of Speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani and postponed its vote on the accountability and justice law.

"The parliament did not vote on the accountability and justice law as scheduled for today's session due to many blocs' objection to the law," MP Safiya al-Suheil said in exclusive statements to the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

The law is an alternative to the debaathification law, enacted by former U.S. civil administrator Paul Bremer, who ruled Iraq after the fall of the former regime in April 2003.

The debaathification law expelled tens of thousands of former Baath Party members from government posts.

In November 2003, Bremer established the debaathification commission to root out senior Baathists from Iraqi ministries and hear appeals from Baathists who were in the lowest ranks of the party's senior leadership.
The accountability and justice law is one of four contentious laws awaiting government approval and parliamentary debate.

The U.S. administration is pressing the Iraqi government for a speedy enactment of these laws, which it believes will boost the national reconciliation project launched by al-Maliki's government in spring of 2006.

The new law will allow thousands of Baathists to return to the political scene.

A parliamentary source told VOI earlier today that Tuesday's agenda includes a vote on the draft accountability and justice law and a discussion of the 2008 budget.

Aswat Aliraq

Joint forces launch Phoenix Phantom Offensive against al-Qaeda-U.S. army

Joint U.S. and Iraqi forces launched a military operation on Tuesday targeting what was believed to be the remaining al-Qaeda cells in Iraq and other extremist elements, the U.S. military said.

”Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, commander of Multi-National Forces in Iraq announced the beginning of Operation Phantom Phoenix,” reported a U.S. army press releases received by the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

It described the offensive as “a series of joint Iraqi and Coalition division- and brigade-level operations to pursue and neutralize the remaining al-Qaeda in Iraq and other extremist elements.”

The operation, dubbed Phantom Phoenix, “will synchronize lethal and non-lethal efforts to exploit recent security gains and disrupt terrorist support zones and enemy command and control.”

“We are continuing to see citizens joining Concerned Local Citizen groups, provide tips for criminals and weapons and ammunition caches, and cooperate with the Government of Iraq” the announcement quoted Odierno as saying.

This is another step aimed at providing Iraqis long-term sustainable security.”

The announcement gave few details about the Operation’s circumstances, but pointed out it was "designed to improve delivery of essential services, economic development and local governance capacity.”

Aswat Aliraq

Arabs exert efforts into Iraq reconciliation

Non-official reports relate arrangements of an Iraqi national reconciliation conference to be held in Cairo this month under the patronage of the Arab League and with the participation of political powers from inside and outside the political process in addition to opponents and representatives of armed groups. However, Iraqi Foreign Ministry denied being aware of any mechanism to hold the conference. Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammed Al Hajj Mahmoud noted that the ministry has no sufficient information on the venue or timing of the conference or issues introduced on the agenda, hinting though about a possible coordination between the Arab league and Foreign Minister Hosheyar Zebari on the sidelines of Arab Foreign Ministers meetings in Cairo.

In anticipation of the conference, Al Sadr Bloc announced its rejection to participate in the national dialogue along the sides of disbanded Baath Party representatives. In an interview with Al Hayat Newspaper, MP Naser Al Saidi clarified that Al Mehdi Army refuses to participate in similar conferences through military or political representation, noting on the other hand that Mehdi Army might not renew its activities if the political process in Iraq does not improve.

While waiting for the conference to take shape, a delegation from the Arab League is expected in Baghdad in order to support national reconciliation efforts according to the decision of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo during their exceptional meeting. Head of the supreme committee for national dialogue MP Faleh Al Fayyad welcomed the visit which he believes aims to enhance national reconciliation denying being aware of any potential meeting between Arab League delegation and Baath Party members. Al Fayyad affirmed that the Arab delegation agenda of meetings will not be subject to interferences. While he noted that national reconciliation project is pure Iraqi, he considered that the Arab League contribution is welcomed.

On the internal level, Accordance Front MP Omar Abdul Sattar affirmed that national reconciliation courses followed by the government are failed adding that political blocs participating in the political process are directed into promoting national reconciliation and reaching satisfying results for all parties.

Alsumaria Iraqi Satellite TV Network | Iraq News | Arabs exert efforts into Iraq reconciliation

Iraqi security delegation to Saudi Arabia

Iraqi Interior Minister Jawad Al Boulani revealed that an Iraqi senior security delegation will visit Saudi Arabia soon to discuss security issues concerning both countries. Al Boulani explained that a Saudi-Iraqi delegation is working with both countries to discuss relevant administrative issues and means to end them appropriately. He added that cooperation is ongoing with officials from the Kingdom to report on investigations undergone with detained Saudis in Iraq. Iraqi Interior Minister revealed that Iraq has not handed yet Saudi citizens to concerned authorities in Saudi Arabia confirming that many Saudis are detained in Iraqi prisons.

Alsumaria Iraqi Satellite TV Network | Iraq News | Iraqi security delegation to Saudi Arabia

Iraq political joint pact is taking shape

A joint pact document adopted by several political parties might be announced this week. The pact includes joint political agreements on major issues such as Kirkuk and Constitution Article 140 in addition to a timetable for multinational forces withdrawal from Iraq in addition to the abstention of signing security agreements with the US. Accordingly, more than ten parliamentarian parties are close to agree on the pact mainly the Iraqi List headed by Iyad Allawi and the Sadrist Bloc as well as Al Fadila Party and parties resigned from the unified Iraqi Coalition. These agreements are not expected to result of a new political bloc knowing that most of the parties participating in the pact have not taken part in the four parties alliance or the tripartite alliance that has been lately announced between Kurdish parties and the Islamic Party.

Iraqi List member Ousama Al Nujaifi declared that the pact will result of a new political movement joining most of political parties denouncing sectarian and ethnic apportionment. Al Nujaifi clarified to Al Hayat Newspaper that the due pact comprises solutions for several problems aimed to change the political course. He noted that the movement’s main target is to create stable political conjunctures away from sectarianism. Al Nujaifi explained that several meetings were held the last few days between MPs from the Iraqi List, Sadrist Bloc, Al Fadila, Al Daawa and resigned MPs from the Coalition.

However, head of Al Sadrist Bloc MP Nassar Al Rubaie showed reservation on the formation of a new political front clarifying that his bloc seeks to reach joint agreements in Parliament regarding crucial laws and issues, while now, attention is focused on a joint pact document. Al Rubaie revealed that concerned parties have agreed to reject the UN proposal to extend Article 140 since their authority has ended end of 2007 according to the Constitution.

For his part, Supreme Council spokesman Sheikh Hamid Al Moala ruled out the possibility for the ten parties to form a new alliance noting that the principles agreed upon by participants are mostly supportive of the government’s stands.

Alsumaria Iraqi Satellite TV Network | Iraq News | Iraq political joint pact is taking shape

Parliament economic committee discusses future of ratio cards

The Parliament economic committee held an expanded meeting dedicated to study the future of ratio cards and discuss mechanisms to improve the economic situation. The committee recommended to exclude those who earn high incomes from radio cards while calling to continue support as to financial allocations regarding ratio cards.

Alsumaria Iraqi Satellite TV Network | Economics News | Parliament economic committee discusses future of ratio cards

OPEC President declines indications on oil production increase

OPEC President Shakib Khalil has declined to give any indications on the possibility of production increase during OPEC meeting due on February 1 in aim to decrease oil prices that have reached a record high of 100 $ per barrel. Khalil considered that according to the strong demand on oil in China, India and the Middle East, 100 $ per barrel is not that high.

Alsumaria Iraqi Satellite TV Network | Economics News | OPEC President declines indications on oil production increase

Kirkuk oil exports unclear, but promising

There are mixed reports on Iraq's resumption of oil exports to Turkey, which were shut down last week because of full storage tanks, not security impediments.

The Iraq State Oil Marketing Organization predicts 400,000 barrels per day of exports starting this month, as Iraq starts setting prices for its Kirkuk oil with more consistent exports through the pipeline to Ceyhan, Turkey.

The export shutdown last week was "due to the fact that Ceyhan's oil reservoirs are totally full with Iraqi crude oil," a source from the North Oil Co. told the Voices of Iraq news agency.

The source added Iraq exports through the twin pipelines north was between 150,000 to 200,000 bpd, below the 300,000 that others have estimated.

Iraq Directory, however, reports the pipeline has restarted at about 72,000 bpd, after the storage tanks capped at 6.8 million barrels.

Regardless, the stoppage appears to be more like growing pains than typical of past disruptions. The pipelines from Kirkuk to Baiji as well as to Ceyhan have been mostly offline since 2003 because of insurgent attacks.

Repairs and a new security plan instituted about six months ago appear to be working, with total oil production up from an average of 2 million bpd to about 2.4 million, largely due to increased northern activity.

The Middle East Economic Survey reports a "security unit" guarding the line was fired and a new pipeline from Kirkuk to al-Fatah started.

SOMO also has begun setting prices for oil sales in the Ceyhan port, MEES reports: European buyers will pay $3.75 below the Brent price and U.S. customers $6.00 below the West Texas Intermediate price, for January. There are also discounts for those who load the oil between Jan. 1 and 17.

Shell, BP, Total, Tupras of Turkey, Cepsa of Spain and Repsol-YPF have signed on as term buyers of Kirkuk oil.

Meanwhile, SOMO plans to award a tender, or tenders, for 6 million barrels.

International Security - Energy - Briefing - UPI.com

Anti-Maliki bloc against Kurd oil deals

Iraqi political factions upset with current leadership have pledged to support the central government in oil deals, an apparent knock to the Kurds.

The pledge comes from a meeting between representatives of former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's supporters, the Sadr Movement, the Fadhila Party and a disaffected part of the Dawa Party.

Dawa, the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq and the Kurdish Coalition make up the ruling government coalition in Baghdad's weakening central government.

IraqSlogger.com, translating an Arabic story in the newspaper Azzaman, says the parties are opposed to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government and will "support the position of the central government regarding its exclusive right to explore oil fields and sign contracts with foreign companies."

Despite being coalition partners, the Kurds have riled the federal oil minister by moving forward unilaterally on developing their oil sector.

The Kurdistan Regional Government, which controls three northern provinces, has passed its own regional oil law and signed more than 20 oil deals with foreign oil firms to explore and produce oil.

Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani calls the moves illegal and threatens to blacklist any company that has signed with the KRG from doing business in the rest of Iraq, where most of the 115 billion barrels of proven reserves are located.

The KRG wants the oil sector governed in a decentralized way, while Baghdad and most Iraqis want it nationalized and controlled by the central authorities.

According to the article, the four parties aligned on the oil deals will also form a new political bloc to oppose the Maliki government.

International Security - Energy - Briefing - UPI.com

Talabani denies KC plans to quit Maliki govt.
Kurdish leaders denied that KC was planning to quite Maliki's government.

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani denied on Saturday that the Kurdistan Coalition (KC) was planning to quit Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's national unity government due to failure of late last year's negotiations between the two sides.

"We advocate dialogue and negotiation with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in order to reach a solution for all issues. There are no plans by the KC to quit the national unity government," Talabani said in a joint press conference with Iraqi Kurdistan President Massoud ala-Barazani after their meeting in the Docan retreat in the Kurdish province of al-Sulaimaniya.

The KC is the second largest bloc in Iraq's parliament with 55 out of a total 275 seats.

A high-ranking delegation led by Iraq's Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani had paid a visit to Baghdad early last month for talks with the central government on article 140 of the Iraqi constitution pertaining to Kirkuk, the Kurdish peshmerga forces' appropriations and oil contracts signed by the autonomous region with a number of foreign companies, which were objected by the central government.

According to statements by Kurdish officials then, the delegation returned to Iraqi Kurdistan with zero outcome.

Meanwhile, Talabani and Barazani denounced the bombing that occurred in Turkey's predominantly Kurdish city of Diyarbakir.

"We denounce the bombing and consider it as an act of antagonism against the Turkish people. We believe that these criminal operations are carried out by groups that want to mar Turkish-Kurdish relations," Talabani said.

The Iraqi foreign ministry had released a statement on Saturday in which it strongly condemned the "terrorist sabotage" in Diyarbakir, which killed or wounded scores of innocent civilians in Turkey.

Recent months have seen tension in Iraqi-Turkish relations due to the activities of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) against the Turkish forces in northern Iraq. Turkey considers the PKK, or Partiya Karkeren Kurdistan in Kurdish, as "terrorist" group.

On negotiations with Iran to demark their joint borders and the fate of the Algiers agreement signed in 1975 between the two sides, Talabani replied that "there is an Iraqi delegation in Iran at the moment to negotiate this affair."

The Iraqi leader dismissed reports that the United States has anything to do with the negotiations.

"Don't forget that it was (the former U.S. Secretary of State) Henry Kissinger who engineered the Algiers agreement," Talabani said.

The Iraqi and Iranian sides are now having negotiations on the re-demarcation of borders, including the Shatt al-Arab area, away from the Algiers agreement, some of whose items are objected by the Iraqi sides. The agreement caused ignited a crisis between the two neighboring countries last month after Talabani gave statements taken by the Iranian side as an announcement to cancel the agreement.

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Iraqi Kurd Warns Against Kirkuk Strife
BAGHDAD — Iraq's Kurdish deputy prime minister warned Monday that failure to resolve the fate of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk could result in more strife and accused people within the government of blocking a solution.

"We have a choice," Barham Saleh told The Associated Press. "We can either turn Kirkuk into an example of national Iraqi unity ... or turn it into a battlefield for strife between the components of Iraq."

A referendum is expected later this year on whether Kirkuk will join the semiautonomous Kurdish zone to its north, or continue to be ruled by Baghdad.

Saleh said it was unacceptable to leave the dispute unresolved and accused unnamed people within the government of Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki of trying to stymie a solution spelled out in the 2005 constitution.

"I am a Kurd and see Kirkuk as part of the Kurdish region," Saleh said, explaining that because Arabs and Turkomen _ the other two main ethnic groups inhabiting the city _ see it differently, the issue must be resolved under current law.

Kirkuk's Arab and Turkomen residents dispute the Kurdish claim to the city, which has over the past 4 1/2 years seen hundreds of deadly attacks with sectarian or ethnic motives.

Leaders of Iraq's Shiite majority fear allowing Kirkuk to join the Kurdish region could undermine their new status as the country's dominant power, while the once-dominant Sunni Arab minority sees the loss of the city as a prelude to the breakup of the nation along sectarian or ethnic lines.

Saleh, like President Jalal Talabani, is widely viewed as a moderate Kurd and his assertion that Kirkuk is part of the Kurdish region reflects a universal conviction among Kurds. But his charge that government parties were working against a solution in Kirkuk reflects tension between the Kurds and their close Shiite allies.

The Kurds and Shiites, who combine for about 80 percent of Iraq's population, have been close allies since Saddam's ouster in 2003, but recent Kurdish assertions of independence, like the conclusion of oil exploration deals with foreign companies, without involving the central government, have led to harsh public exchanges.

The constitution, which most of Iraq's Sunni Arabs voted against in a 2005 referendum, provides for the "normalization" of Kirkuk _ allowing Kurds forcibly moved from the city under Saddam Hussein's "Arabization" program to return and inviting Arabs lured there decades ago by financial reward to leave in return for compensation.

FOXNews.com - Iraqi Kurd Warns Against Kirkuk Strife - International News | News of the World | Middle East News | Europe News

Iraq's Akkaz gas could go to Syria, Europe

Iraq is looking to develop the western Akkaz gas field, which may feed European customers via Syria.

Iraq has 112 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, though the infrastructure is vastly undeveloped, with most of the gas found when producing oil burns off.

Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani told al-Arabiya the gas field "now has five wells that are ready to be interconnected and provide the Syrian market with approximately 50 million cubic feet per day of Iraqi gas."

Shahristani said he plans to visit the European Union "this month to agree with them on supplying Europe with Iraqi gas."

The Middle East Economic Survey reports Akkaz could also feed 450 million cubic feet per day of natural gas to the planned Nabucco pipeline, which would head to European customers.

Europe is looking to find Russian alternative sources of natural gas, and Iraq has some of the largest underexplored and underdeveloped gas reserves in the world.

Shell is likely to be a top candidate for a deal to develop Akkaz, MEES reports, and has produced a development plan for Iraq's gas sector.

International Security - Energy - Briefing - UPI.com

Iraqi oil dreams

No mandarin in the Iraqi oil ministry is likely to dine alone over the next few years. Every international major has people on the ground, spending big sums on soft persuasion. The spadework should pay off once the country's long-delayed hydrocarbons law is ratified and access to the world's second-largest crude reserve is finally divvied up. But drawing up that law is proving divisive. The majors generally prefer long-term production sharing contracts for development, for example, under which they can book reserves on their balance sheets. The ministry, meanwhile, has signalled that more restrictive service contracts may be used for certain fields, which do not provide the risk-adjusted returns the majors are after.

Then there is the problem of Kurdistan. Before Christmas, DNO of Norway, the only overseas company actually producing oil in Iraq, doubled its recovery estimates from its Tawke field in the region. The fact that DNO's shares barely budged, in spite of a big increase in the company's implied net asset value, suggests deep reservations among investors over a denationalised Iraqi oil industry.

FT.com / Lex - Iraqi oil dreams

India's Reliance to sign up for Iraqi oil assets

Reliance Industries Ltd, India's top exploration firm, will seek a role in developing oil assets in Iraq despite signing contracts with its largely autonomous Kurdish region, a move which angered Baghdad.

Reliance, the world's fourth-largest oil refiner, will register with Iraqi authorities so it can compete for tenders, P.M.S. Prasad, president and CEO of the company's petroleum business, told reporters at an industry event.

"We will register in Iraq. We are keen to be there. We believe there will be some kind of reconciliation between northern Iraq and rest of Iraq," he said.

Iraq holds the world's third-largest reserves of crude oil with 115 billion barrels of proven supplies, only after Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Shares in Reliance, which had more than doubled in 2007, rose 1.2 percent to a record close of 3,050.50 rupees in a Mumbai market that ended 0.3 percent up.

"This is a hugely positive move for Reliance in terms of securing oil and gas assets abroad," said Rohit Nagraj, an oil sector analyst with Angel Broking Ltd.

Last week, Baghdad set a deadline of Jan. 31 for international oil firms to register with it for participation in tenders expected to be issued soon for oil exploration and service contracts in southern, central and northern Iraq.

But it has threatened to blacklist oil companies, such as Reliance, that have signed deals with the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG).
In November, Reliance signed contracts with the KRG for two onshore blocks, Rovi and Sarta.

The Kurdish administration is moving ahead with plans to attract international energy companies to explore for oil and gas in the region, and has struck production sharing agreements with various firm, despite Baghdad's objections.

Reliance, which has been actively pursuing petroleum exploration activities in the Middle East, Asia-Pacific region and South America, also owns exploration blocks in Yemen, Oman, East Timor, Australia and Colombia through its subsidiaries.

On Tuesday the firm reiterated that it hopes to commission a new refinery adjacent to its 660,000 barrels per day plant at Jamnagar in the western state of Gujarat ahead of its original target date of December.
"It will be ahead of schedule. We want to do it three four months ahead," Prasad said.

The under-construction 580,000 bpd unit is being built by Reliance subsidiary Reliance Petroleum Ltd, and will make Jamnagar the world's biggest refining complex.

Oil major Chevron Corp owns a 5 percent stake in Reliance Petroleum, with an option to raise it to 29 percent.

UPDATE 2-India's Reliance to sign up for Iraqi oil assets | Markets | Reuters

Update......

Power in Iraq's north cut by fuel, Turkey

Gas feeding northern Iraq power generators and supply from Turkey has been cut, hampering an electricity sector also facing regular attacks.

An Iraq Electricity Ministry spokesman said a "technical failure" in an oil field where the gas comes from has shut generators in Mosul, Kirkuk and Baiji, the Voices of Iraq news agency reports.

Aziz al-Shimari added maintenance on a power line from Turkey has reduced electricity supply by 40 percent.

"A technical failure hit the oil field three days ago," Shimari said, "suspending the gas, which feeds the northern generators."

He said it will take an "unspecified amount of time" to fix the Ugail oil field, located in Kirkuk.

Power was affected in Kirkuk, Baiji and Mosul.

"The Iraqi network lost a total of 500 megawatts because of the (suspension) in the Turkish-Iraqi line three days ago due to maintenance works on the Turkish side," Shimari added, "which led to the loss of about 200 megawatts."

On Saturday saboteurs bombed a tower, cutting power between Baiji and areas west of Baghdad.

At least 1,211 workers in Iraq's power sector have been targeted like their colleagues in oil, according to an assessment from March 2003 to Nov. 17, 2007, made for United Press International by an expert in threats and vulnerabilities to the energy sector *********.

There have been 651 attacks on distribution and transmission lines and towers, 66 attacks on thermal power stations, five on hydroelectric power stations and 13 on power substations.

Meanwhile, Electricity Minister Karim Waheed Hasan is meeting in Amman with his Jordanian counterpart.

The Al Sabaah newspaper reports Jordan has pledged support and cooperation for enhancing Iraq's power sector.

International Security - Energy - Briefing - UPI.com

Iraq's Crude Oil Exports Jump To Record In December

Iraqi oil exports raced to a fresh high of 1.97 million barrels per day in December thanks to an uptick in sales from the northern Kirkuk fields, while rough weather in the Mideast Gulf barely dented sailings from the Basrah Oil Terminal. The December exports came in just above an upward revised 1.92 million b/d in November, shipping data show. Of this, 410,000 b/d of Kirkuk was shipped through the north and 1.56 million b/d of Basrah Light through the Mideast Gulf in the south.

Iraq's Crude Oil Exports Jump To Record In December

OPEC-10 Jan output slips but above target-consultant

Ten members of OPEC are lowering oil output further in January, improving compliance with a deal to cut production and prop up prices, an industry consultant said on Wednesday.

The 10 members, which exclude Iraq and Angola and are subject to output limits are expected to pump 27.1 million barrels a day in January, down 200,000 bpd from December, Geneva-based Petrologistics said.

January's supply is still higher than the target for the 10 countries of 26.3 million bpd. A new supply reduction of 500,000 bpd comes into force from Feb. 1.

"They have cut a little bit more -- it's bits and pieces, but not much," said Conrad Gerber, head of Petrologistics.

Supply from top world exporter Saudi Arabia is expected to be virtually unchanged at 8.75 million bpd in January, compared with 8.76 million bpd in December, Gerber said.

Output from Iran, OPEC's second largest producer, is expected to drop about 50,000 bpd to 3.85 million bpd, and Kuwait's production is running about 40,000 bpd lower than in December, he said.

Including Iraq and Angola, production by the 12-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is expected to rise to about 30.6 million bpd this month.

Iraq's output is steady so far in January at around 1.95 million bpd but volumes from Iraq's tender to sell Kirkuk crude will probably push the figure up, Gerber said.

Iraq awarded a million barrels of crude each to three European refiners in its first Kirkuk oil sales tender since September, an Iraqi oil ministry source said on Monday.

France's Total, Spain's Cepsa and Italy's ERG will each load million-barrel Kirkuk cargoes from Ceyhan in Turkey before the end of January, the source said.

Angola, which became an OPEC member on Jan. 1, is pumping about 1.6 million bpd this month, according to Petrologistics.

UPDATE 1-OPEC-10 Jan output slips but above target-consultant | Markets | Reuters

A Surge Against Maliki

By David Ignatius
Wednesday, January 9, 2008; A15

A new movement to oust Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is gathering force in Baghdad. And although the United States is counseling against this change of government, a senior U.S. official in the Iraqi capital says it's a moment of "breakthrough or breakdown" for Maliki's regime.

The new push against Maliki comes from Kurdish leaders, who, U.S. and Iraqi sources told me, sent him an ultimatum in late December. "The letter was clear in saying we are concerned about the direction of policies in Baghdad," said a senior Kurdish official. He described the Dec. 21 letter as "a sincere effort from the Kurdish parties to help the government reform -- or else."

The Kurds are upset that Maliki hasn't delivered on promises they say he made to them last summer, when he was trying to stave off an earlier attempted putsch. Maliki pledged then that his government would pass an oil law and a regional-powers law, and that it would conduct a referendum on the future of Kirkuk. None of these promises has been fulfilled, and the Kurds are angry.

The strongest anti-Maliki voice is Massoud Barzani, the dominant political leader in Kurdistan. Barzani agreed to back Maliki last summer after a personal telephone call from President Bush. Now, fuming about Turkish attacks across the border last month and the delay on Kirkuk, Barzani is on the warpath.

Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador in Baghdad, met after Christmas in Kurdistan with Barzani and Jalal Talabani, the Iraqi president and the region's other ruling warlord. In a telephone interview yesterday from Baghdad, Crocker said his message to the Kurds was: "We think everyone should be placing emphasis on making the government more effective, not on changing the government."

Although U.S. officials are counseling against removing Maliki, they agree that the prime minister must govern more effectively and inclusively in coming months -- or suffer the "breakdown" described by the senior U.S. official. "Clearly there is a sense among the Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites that the government isn't doing what it's supposed to do," he explained. "It needs to get better quick."

The anti-Maliki forces would like to replace him with Adel Abdul Mahdi, one of Iraq's vice presidents and a leader of the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, headed by Abdul Aziz al-Hakim. Mahdi's supporters think they can muster the 138 votes needed for a no-confidence vote in parliament, by combining 53 votes from the Kurdish parties with 55 from Sunni groups and 30 from Hakim's Islamic Council. Add another 40 votes from supporters of former prime ministers Ayad Allawi and Ibrahim al-Jafari, and you're close to the two-thirds majority needed to form a new government.

The rumor mill in Baghdad is already floating the names of officials who would take cabinet posts in a new government. The Kurds are said to want key security portfolios, perhaps including control over intelligence through the Ministry of National Security. Various candidates have been proposed to take over the Energy Ministry -- and halt what is said to be massive smuggling of oil from the southern Iraqi pipeline across the border to Iran.

The biggest obstacle to removing Maliki is the Shiite religious leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, who is said to be frustrated with Maliki's poor performance but wary of dividing the Shiite alliance. "Najaf [Sistani's headquarters] is unhappy," said one top Iraqi leader. But the senior U.S. official said he was "certain" that Sistani had not yet blessed any change of government.

Though Bush administration officials share the Iraqi frustration with Maliki, they fear that a change of regime would add delay and distrust to the already chaotic political scene in Baghdad. "How long would such a transition take? How long before they would form a new government?" worries a second senior U.S. official.

Rather than dumping Maliki, the administration hopes to work around him, by operating through a coalition known as the "three plus one." That group includes, in addition to Maliki, President Talabani and vice presidents Mahdi and Tariq al-Hashimi. "Our message to Maliki is that you can't govern solo. You have to govern as part of a group," says the second senior U.S. official. With a push from this governing alliance, Crocker hopes the Iraqi parliament will pass a law easing de-Baathification as early as the end of this week, and a budget by mid-January -- finally breaking the political logjam.

For an America caught up in its own political drama, the Baghdad primary seems remote. But what happens in Iraq during the next several weeks will shape events there for the rest of 2008. For Maliki, just back in Baghdad after a visit to London doctors for treatment for exhaustion, it's "make or break" time.

The writer is co-host ofPostGlobal, an online discussion of international issues. His e-mail address [email protected].