There was a noticeable increase in the volume of Iraqi oil
exports under the United Nations oil-for-food programme in the week ending on
24 August. At an average rate of 2.4 million barrels a day, Iraq exported 16.8
million barrels of oil, compared with the previous weekly volume of 13.9
million barrels during two consecutive weeks. There were five loadings each
from the two authorized loading terminals of Mina al-Bakr and Ceyhan, with
10.4 million barrels and 6.4 million barrels, respectively. The revenue raised
from the week’s oil sales was an estimated €397 million (euros) or $362
million, at current prices and rates of exchange. The average price of Iraqi
crude oil during the week was approximately €24.60 or $22.49 per barrel.
In current phase X of the programme, which runs from 4 July
to 30 November 2001, thus far, 96.3 million barrels of oil have been lifted,
generating an estimated
€2.15 billion or $1.96
billion in revenue. The United Nations oil overseers
during the week approved 12 new oil purchase contracts for seven million
barrels of Basrah Light and 12 million barrels of Kirkuk crude. There are now
98 approved oil purchase contracts in phase X for 282 million barrels
of oil, 171 million of which are
for Basrah Light and 111 million for Kirkuk.
Since the beginning of the programme on 10 December 1996,
Iraqi oil sales of almost 2.6 billion barrels have earned an estimated revenue
of some $38.6 billion and
€8.8 billion ($7.6
billion). The United States dollar was replaced with the euro for the Iraqi
oil purchases in early November 2000, at the request of the Government of Iraq
and with the consent of the Security Council’s 661 sanctions committee. With
the adoption of Security Council resolution 1330 (2000) on 5 December 2000, 72
per cent of the oil proceeds fund the humanitarian programme in Iraq, 59 per
cent of which is for the 15 central and southern governorates and 13 per cent
for the three northern governorates.
Contracts worth $25.4 billion for humanitarian supplies and
another $2.1 billion worth of contracts for oil industry spare parts and
equipment have been approved by the Security Council’s 661 sanctions
committee and “fast-tracked” by the Office of the Iraq Programme (OIP)
since the start of the programme. Of these, more than $14.1 billion worth of
humanitarian supplies and $858 million worth of oil industry spare parts and
equipment have been delivered to Iraq, while additional $11.3 billion worth of
humanitarian supplies and $1.3 billion worth of oil spare parts and equipment
are in the production and delivery pipeline.
During the week, the 661 Committee placed on hold 32 new
contracts, valued at $96.4 million, whereas nine contracts, worth $7.7
million, were released from hold. The total value of “holds” now stands at
$3.58 billion. In all, 1,481 contracts are on hold, comprising 1,017
humanitarian supply contracts, worth over $3 billion, and 489 contracts for
oil industry spare parts and equipment, worth $516 million.
As at 24 August, over $1.5 billion and €724 million in
unused funds were available in the United Nations escrow account for the
issuance of additional letters of credit for the purchase of humanitarian
supplies and oil spare parts and equipment by the Government of Iraq.
