The Iraqi government has issued its 2019 oil sales allocation plans and expects them to be spread as follows: 67% will head to Asian markets (from 60% in 2018), while the remainder will be shipped to Europe (20%) and the Americas (13%). These figures will also include sales from the country's southern oil fields near Basra and from the Kirkuk region in the north.
The country seeks to secure a greater share of Asian markets and to sign several joint venture (JV) agreements with Chinese, India, Japanese and South Korean companies. Iraq also aims at boosting its oil shipments to China in particular and expects to send approximately 1.45 mb/d to China in 2019.
Earlier in November 2018, Iraq resumed oil exports from the Kirkuk oil fields one year after the city was seized by federal forces from the autonomous Kurdish administration over dispute about oil payments, revenues and pipeline fees. An agreement has been reached with the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) to export 50,000 bbl/d to 100,000 bbl/d through a pipeline running through the Kurdish territory to Turkey.