Iraq begins fuel exports to Lebanon

Iraq’s oil minister said on Monday that an agreement has been reached with Lebanon to start fuel export supplies to Beirut in 2021 using global prices.

The announcement came after a meeting between Iraq’s Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar and his Lebanese counter Raymond Ghajar in Baghdad on Monday.

Fuel supply quantities will be “limited and to be announced later” and will cover part of Lebanon’s needs for fuel to generate power, the ministry cited Jabbar as saying.

“Iraq agreed to sell a quantity of black oil to Lebanon during the year of 2021. The quantities will be announced later, according to the prices of the international platform,” Abdul Jabbar said in a statement.

Ghajar said it was agreed to import fuel oil from Iraq to cover the requirements of Lebanese power stations.

In another context, Iraq’s Central Bank said Sunday that the exchange rate of the dollar will reach IQD1,460 when sold to the public and other banks, down from IQD1,182.

The devaluation came as the Iraqi government faces a financial crisis brought by low oil prices as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, knowing that Iraq depends on oil revenue for 95 percent of its income.

The last devaluation took place in December 2015 when it raised the sale price of US dollars to IQD1,182 from IQD1,166.

However, lowering the value of its dinar by a significant rate, which was the highest devaluation rate since 2003, would immediately raise the price of goods, hitting living standards.

For his part, First Deputy Speaker of Parliament Hassan Karim Al-Kaabi called for an emergency session of the House of Representatives in the presence of Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi to discuss the “sudden” rise in the dollar exchange rate.