Shafaq News- Baghdad
Iraqi lawmaker Hiyam Al-Yasiri on Tuesday accused the Oil Ministry and state-owned oil marketer SOMO of blocking Iraqi tankers from carrying crude through the Strait of Hormuz despite US and Iranian security clearance, alleging possible corruption behind the decision.
Al-Yasiri, a member of the Reconstruction and Development Bloc, told Shafaq News that parliament’s Transport and Communications Committee questioned the transport minister and senior officials over the dispute. She maintained that the General Company for Maritime Transport has the vessels, technical capacity, and insurance required for the operation, but has not been authorized to proceed.
Linking the refusal to “suspicions of corruption” surrounding control of oil transportation, she urged Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi to intervene and allow the Transport Ministry to handle the shipments.
Read more: No exit but Hormuz: Iraq's economic vulnerability exposed
Oil Minister Basim Mohammed Khudair put Iraq’s production at 2.7 million barrels per day on Aug. 8, of which between 1.5 million and 1.7 million bpd reach international markets.
As OPEC’s second-largest producer, Iraq exports about 95% of its crude through southern terminals, leaving the country particularly vulnerable to disruptions in Gulf shipping. Eco Iraq, an economic affairs observatory, estimated that disruption to the Strait of Hormuz had cost Iraq about 350 million barrels in lost exports by June 20, equivalent to roughly $37.7 billion in revenue.
An Iraqi delegation was expected to visit Iran for discussions on energy supplies and securing tanker passage through Hormuz, a government source previously told Shafaq News.