The Ministry of Oil, however, said that the process of transporting crude oil at the Port of Basra follows an advanced counters system and is subject to supervision by several parties, in addition to using the Aldhirah system as a final stage in oil loading.
In a press release issued by the Oil Ministry, the director of the Port of Basra Khalil Hantoush said, “The port’s current capacity is 1.850 million barrels per day with four terminals. There’s a commission composed of representatives from the South Oil Company, the client company and the international testing company tasked with measuring the deck of the carrier before loading oil. Another commission measures the quantity of oil placed on the carrier’s deck.”
Hantoush noted, “The difference between the first commission’s figure and that of the second represents the loading net that complies with the counters’ results at the port.”
In an interview with Al-Monitor, oil expert Hamza al-Jawahri stressed the current difficulty of smuggling oil due to the complex procedure implemented by foreign oil companies, arguing that prior to licensing rounds, Iraqi oil was subject to large smuggling operations due to corruption.
“International companies operating in Basra’s fields like ExxonMobil and BP among others are paid for each barrel they produce, which means that it would be impossible to steal such large quantities without them complaining or withdrawing,” he said.
However, the contending members of parliament were not convinced, insisting that the prime minister and Integrity Commission should follow up on the issue and preserve the country’s wealth that is being stolen while everyone is turning a blind eye.
Oil remains one of the most controversial issues in the Iraqi economy. The contracts concluded by the Ministry of Oil are not disclosed to the public, and the public is not aware of the stages preceding the agreements nor the current operation procedures in this sector.
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