PARLIAMENTARY OIL COMMITTEE RULES OUT PASSING OIL AND GAS LAW DURING CURRENT SESSION, 13 MARCH

 PARLIAMENTARY OIL COMMITTEE RULES OUT PASSING OIL AND GAS LAW DURING CURRENT SESSION

The Parliamentary Oil and Gas Committee confirmed today, Friday, that there are disagreements over the management of resources, which led to the obstruction of passing the Oil and Gas Law, while it ruled out passing it in the current electoral cycle.

“The oil and gas law has been a demand since 2007, but attempts to legislate it have failed due to political differences and lack of agreement with the Kurdistan Region,” said Bassem Naghmish Al-Gharibawi, a member of the parliamentary oil and gas committee,
in an interview with the Iraqi News Agency, followed by “Al-Eqtisad News.” He explained that “the law was part of the current ministerial program, and it was supposed to be legislated during this parliamentary session, as committees were formed since 2023 to discuss it, and two drafts were presented: the first from the federal government and the second from the region, and joint committees were formed to hold meetings between the two parties.”

He pointed out that “most of the technical issues were agreed upon, but the differences focused on administrative aspects, powers, and representation of the region and governorates in the Federal Oil Council, in addition to how to manage and distribute resources, as well as previous and current rights.”

He explained that “the parliamentary oil committee has made intensive efforts with the leaders of the political blocs to clarify the importance of enacting the law, as it regulates the oil wealth that fully funds the state, and contributes to resolving the disputes between the federal government and the region, which contributes to achieving political and economic stability.”

He added that “the most prominent point of disagreement between Baghdad and Erbil is related to oil resources and the region’s commitment to the decisions issued by the Federal Court and the International Court,” noting that “this law is one of the laws that complement the constitution.” Despite all the attempts, Al-Gharibawi stressed that “the committees that were formed were unable to reach a political consensus, which makes passing the law during this electoral cycle an unexpected matter.”