ERBIL, Iraq, Oct. 2 (UPI) -- Most of the international oil companies working in the Kurdish north of Iraq are back to normal operations, the semiautonomous Kurdish government said.
The influx of militants with the group calling itself the Islamic State prompted some oil and natural gas companies working in northern Iraq to pull staff from the region as a security precaution. The Peshmerga, a Kurdish military force, has been able to keep the northern region relatively secured and some companies have returned to service.
"Kurdistan's oil and gas infrastructure remains unaffected by the operations against terrorists," the Kurdish Ministry of Natural Resources said in a Wednesday statement. "All security forces are aware of oil and gas assets and are committed to continuing to protect them."
British energy company Gulf Keystone Petroleum was the most recent to announce staffing levels in the Kurdish north were back to normal levels. Since January, the company said it's been able to get 4 million barrels of Kurdish oil to the international market despite the rise of the Islamic State in the region.
The Kurdish Ministry of Natural Resources said about 70 percent of the production areas are in operation and 95 percent of the companies with assets in the region have returned to normal work.
