(2 - 8 March 2002)
With more contracts released from hold by the Security
Council’s 661 sanctions committee than new ones placed on hold during the
week in review, the value of “holds” dropped slightly from the previous
week’s total of $5.32 billion to $5.27 billion. Those contracts released
from hold, 47 in all valued at $134 million, included a large number for
various types of vehicles, buses and mini-buses. The new “holds” comprised
37 contracts worth $79 million. Of the total “holds” covering 2,093
contracts for the purchase of various humanitarian supplies and equipment,
1,436 contracts, worth about $4.6 billion, were for humanitarian supplies and
657 contracts, worth $710 million, were for oil industry spare parts and
equipment.
There were 252 contracts, worth $499 million, in the
category of “inactive holds”, for which the suppliers had not provided the
additional technical information requested by the “holding” Committee
member(s) in over 60 days. However, in the category of “active holds”,
there were also 658 contracts, worth almost $2 billion, for which although the
suppliers had provided the requested information over 60 days ago, the
“holding” Committee member(s) had not yet made a final decision.
In terms of Iraq’s oil exports under the United Nations
oil-for-food programme, at the average rate of just over 2 million barrels per
day, the week’s volume reached 14.2 million barrels, generating an estimated
€330 million (euros) or $285 million in revenue, at current prices and rate
of exchange. The average price of Iraqi crude oil was approximately €23.10
or $20.15 per barrel. There were six liftings from Mina al-Bakr loading
terminal, with 10.9 million barrels of oil, and four from Ceyhan, with 3.3
million barrels.
During the week, the United Nations oil overseers approved
two new oil purchase contracts, bringing the total number of such approved
contracts in current phase XI of the programme to 134, covering 324 million
barrels of oil. So far out of the total volume approved, 156 million barrels
have been lifted, netting an estimated revenue of €3.1 billion or $2.7
billion. Phase XI runs from 1 December 2001 to 29 May 2002.
Since the beginning of the programme on 10
December 1996, approximately $38.6 billion and €15.7
billion ($13.7 billion) in revenue has been generated
from the export of some 2.96 billion barrels of oil. 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.
At the same time, humanitarian supply contracts worth some
$32.5 billion have been both approved by the 661 Committee and
“fast-tracked” by the Office of the Iraq Programme (OIP), including $2.9
billion worth of contracts for oil industry spare parts and equipment. To
date, $19.8 billion worth of humanitarian supplies and equipment have been
delivered to Iraq, including $1.2 billion worth of oil industry equipment,
while another $11 billion worth of humanitarian supplies and $1.7 billion
worth of oil industry equipment are in the production and delivery pipeline.
As at 8 March 2002, about $1.8 billion and €231 million in
unused funds still available in the United Nations Iraq Account were earmarked
for oil spare parts and equipment and for the purchase of humanitarian
supplies under special allocation aimed at addressing the needs of especially
vulnerable groups. Also, there were 744 approved contracts for humanitarian
supplies with a total value of $1.73 billion for which no funds were
available.
