OSLO, Norway, June 6 (UPI) -- Norwegian energy company DNO International said Monday it received its first payment for crude oil exported from the Kurdish government in Iraq.
The Iraqi finance minister in May confirmed the first oil export payment to contractors in the Kurdish region. Kurdish Prime Minister Barham Salih said the federal government in Baghdad confirmed payment to the Kurdistan Regional Government for revenues derived from the export of 5 million barrels of oil early this year.
DNO said Monday the first payment of $103.7 million for its crude oil exports is a milestone for its operations in the Kurdish provinces in Iraq.
"This combined with the recent positive and encouraging results from the ongoing operations, form a solid basis for increased activities and investments within the company's portfolio in the region," the company said in a statement.
A January deal between Baghdad and the KRG called for about half of the petroleum products produced in the Kurdish provinces to be used for domestic demand with the rest exported through Turkish ports on the Mediterranean Sea.
DNO and its partners started exports from the Tawke oil field in June 2009. Oil flowed for just four months after it started, however, because of legal disputes between the Kurdish government and Baghdad.
