Iraq agrees to export oil to Sudan through payment on credit

Sudan struggles to meet domestic demand for diesel and other refined oil products since it lost most of its oil production with the split of southern Sudan in 2011. The oil was the main source of budget revenues and hard currency needed to pay for imports.

The Investment Minister , Mustafa Othman Ismail said in a statement briefed by “Shafaq News” after his return from Baghdad, that the Iraqi government agreed during his visit to supply Sudan with oil “.

He added that there is a technical team from the Sudanese Ministry of Petroleum in Iraq now to discuss the technical issues of the agreement in terms of quantities and payments.

The Iraqi Oil Ministry didn’t answer immediately when asked to comment.

Ismail had held talks in Baghdad over the past few days with senior officials, including Prime Minister, Nuri al-Maliki.

A statement by the Presidency of the Iraqi government said that al-Maliki discussed with the Sudanese delegation cooperation in energy and agriculture field, but did not refer to Sudan's oil supply.

Iraq needs strongly to oil imports to rebuild its crumbling infrastructure due to long years of war, siege and lack of basic services that comes on top of citizens' complaints.

Iraq has granted Somalia and Mauritania financial grants up to 30 million $ and that has sparked resentment among Iraqis when Baghdad said that it has started on the establishment of projects at their own expense in two countries.