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Iraq Resumes Limited Oil Exports via Türkiye

Iraq's Oil Minister Hayan Abdel Ghani during a meeting on December 28, 2025. (Iraqi Ministry of Oil)
Iraq's Oil Minister Hayan Abdel Ghani during a meeting on December 28, 2025. (Iraqi Ministry of Oil)
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Iraq Resumes Limited Oil Exports via Türkiye

Iraq's Oil Minister Hayan Abdel Ghani during a meeting on December 28, 2025. (Iraqi Ministry of Oil)
Iraq's Oil Minister Hayan Abdel Ghani during a meeting on December 28, 2025. (Iraqi Ministry of Oil)

Iraq announced on Wednesday it had resumed limited oil exports of 250,000 bpd through the Turkish port of Ceyhan after the country's output plunged due to disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.

A founding member of the OPEC cartel, crude oil sales make up 90 percent of Iraq's budget revenues. Before the outbreak of war on February 28, Iraq mainly shipped its oil -- roughly 3.5 million barrels per day -- from the southern Basra fields via the Strait of Hormuz.

The state-owned North Oil Company said it "has begun operating the Sarlo pumping station to resume pumping and exporting Kirkuk oil to the port of Ceyhan with an initial capacity of 250,000 barrels per day".

Iraq resumed oil exports from its fields in the northern Kirkuk province "after a disruptive period that posed a significant challenge to the oil sector," and in agreement with the autonomous Kurdistan Region, through which the pipeline to Türkiye’s port of Ceyhan runs.

Iraq has been scrambling to find a solution to export its oil, and there have been long-running talks with Iraqi Kurdistan to ship it through the autonomous region.

Kurdish authorities had asked for several measures in return, before agreeing to let the oil flow through the region's pipeline.

The Kurdistan natural resources ministry said that the Sarlo oil station began operating at 6:30 am (0330 GMT) to enable exports via the Kurdistan region pipeline to the port of Ceyhan.

Iran has closed the strait, through which as much as a fifth of the world's global crude oil and liquefied natural gas is normally shipped, to vessels from most countries.

Iraq's Oil Minister Hayan Abdel Ghani said his country was in contact with Iran to try to arrange passage for some of its oil tankers through the waterway.

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Business

South Korea's KEPCO Wins Saudi Jafurah Power Project

The Jafura field (Aramco)
The Jafura field (Aramco)
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South Korea's KEPCO Wins Saudi Jafurah Power Project

The Jafura field (Aramco)
The Jafura field (Aramco)

Korea Electric Power Corp (KEPCO) said it had won a contract to build and operate the second phase of a cogeneration power plant at Saudi Arabia's Jafurah project.

The company expects total revenue of about 2.1 trillion ⁠won ($1.4 billion) from ⁠the project.

KEPCO said in a statement it signed the power and steam sales agreements with Saudi Aramco for the ⁠project and completed a construction contract with Doosan Enerbility.

The plant will have power generation capacity of 331 megawatts and produce about 465 metric tons of steam per hour. It is scheduled to be built by June 2029, after which it ⁠will supply ⁠power and steam for 17 years, KEPCO said.

KEPCO said the project is an expansion of the 317-MW first phase of the Jafurah cogeneration plant, which it won through an international tender in 2022 and expects to complete by the end of June.

Business

Egypt Says Close to Issuing $500 Million Japan Samurai Bond

A minibus moves along a main road underneath new Cairo Monorail track as a train moves above in the Fifth Settlement, a neighborhood of the New Cairo suburb of Cairo, on May 22, 2026. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP)
A minibus moves along a main road underneath new Cairo Monorail track as a train moves above in the Fifth Settlement, a neighborhood of the New Cairo suburb of Cairo, on May 22, 2026. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP)
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Egypt Says Close to Issuing $500 Million Japan Samurai Bond

A minibus moves along a main road underneath new Cairo Monorail track as a train moves above in the Fifth Settlement, a neighborhood of the New Cairo suburb of Cairo, on May 22, 2026. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP)
A minibus moves along a main road underneath new Cairo Monorail track as a train moves above in the Fifth Settlement, a neighborhood of the New Cairo suburb of Cairo, on May 22, 2026. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP)

Egypt is finalizing plans for its first yen-denominated bond sale in three years, Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty told Reuters on a trip to Japan on Thursday.

The African Development Bank said in December it would partially guarantee Cairo's planned $500 million-equivalent Samurai bonds on the Japanese markets this year.

"We are completing the final ⁠steps," Abdelatty said ⁠on the sidelines of an event in Tokyo, adding that he had been promoting the sale and other investment opportunities while in Japan.

"We had extensive discussions ⁠with our Japanese friends on monetary, fiscal, financial support, especially with regard to budget support and samurai bonds as well."

Egypt's economy has been boosted in recent years by major real estate investments and an $8 billion IMF loan, though the Iran war is piling pressure ⁠on ⁠its finances.

The bond sale would be Egypt's third in the currency, following issuances in 2022 and 2023.

"It will be very important, despite the fact that we've been hit hard with implications of the (Iran) war," Abdelatty said.

Business

Oil Falls as Lebanon and Israel Agree on a Ceasefire

FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows an offshore oil platform in Guanabara Bay in Niteroi, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, March 18, 2026. REUTERS/Pilar Olivares/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows an offshore oil platform in Guanabara Bay in Niteroi, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, March 18, 2026. REUTERS/Pilar Olivares/File Photo
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Oil Falls as Lebanon and Israel Agree on a Ceasefire

FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows an offshore oil platform in Guanabara Bay in Niteroi, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, March 18, 2026. REUTERS/Pilar Olivares/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows an offshore oil platform in Guanabara Bay in Niteroi, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, March 18, 2026. REUTERS/Pilar Olivares/File Photo

Oil prices fell on Thursday as a ceasefire deal between Israel and Lebanon boosted hopes for a broader agreement to end the US-Israeli war with Iran that could lead to a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent futures were down 87 cents, or 0.89%, at $96.92 a barrel by 0458 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude fell 78 cents, or 0.81%, to $95.24, paring gains from earlier in the week, said Reuters.

Both Brent and WTI rose about 2% on Wednesday after renewed Middle East hostilities including Iranian attacks on Kuwait ‌and US military strikes ‌near the Strait of Hormuz.

Israel and Lebanon ‌said ⁠late on Wednesday ⁠they had agreed to implement a ceasefire, raising hopes for a deal between Washington and Tehran, which has conditioned any agreement in part on an end to fighting between Israel and Lebanon.

US President Donald Trump suggested on Wednesday that there could be progress in negotiations with Iran as soon as this weekend.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Wednesday said Tehran's ⁠contacts with Washington have not been cut ‌off, but no progress has been made ‌in the negotiations, adding both sides were studying the texts that were exchanged.

In ‌the US, the Republican-led House approved a resolution on Wednesday to ‌block Trump from continuing the war against Iran. To take effect, the resolution would need Senate approval and two-thirds majorities in both chambers to override an almost certain Trump veto.

Meanwhile, US crude stockpiles fell by 8 million barrels to ‌433.7 million barrels in the week ended May 29, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. ⁠That was a ⁠much bigger drop than the 4-million-barrel draw analysts had expected in a Reuters poll.

The International Energy Agency warned on Tuesday that global oil inventories could hit critical levels ahead of peak summer demand if stock draws continue at their current pace, despite Chinese crude imports falling by 6 million barrels a day in May compared to March.

“Inventories have provided a cushion for the oil market. However, even if we see an imminent restart of oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, the recovery will be slow and gradual,” a note from ING said.

“This suggests inventories are likely to continue to tighten into the third quarter, leaving upside risk to prices.”