SOMO Director: Rise in Iraqi Oil Exports to U.S. Driven by Temporary Logistical Factors

Reuters

A drone view shows oil tankers loading crude oil at the Basra Oil Terminal in Iraqi territorial waters, off the coast of Basra, Iraq, 5 August 2025.

Iraq’s State Organization for Oil Marketing (SOMO) announced on Sunday that Iraqi crude oil exports to the United States rose to approximately 435,000 barrels per day last week, stressing that the increase was temporary and did not reflect a shift in marketing policy.

SOMO Director General Ali Nizar al-Shatri told the Iraq's state media (INA) that the rise in exports “does not indicate any change in Iraq’s approved marketing strategy or export allocations, but is the result of temporary logistical factors.” He explained that several shipments were loaded within a short timeframe due to transportation schedules, refinery demand and port conditions, creating the appearance of a sharp weekly increase.

“This concentration of shipments may give the impression of higher exports on a weekly basis,” al-Shatri said, “while monthly export volumes remain within the normal levels allocated to American companies.” He added that monthly allocations to U.S. firms are still below contractual ceilings because of limited quantities available for export.

Al-Shatri noted that claims suggesting Iraq has become the second-largest oil supplier to the United States are misleading when viewed against stable monthly and quarterly data. He pointed out that figures from specialised analytics firms, including Kpler, show Iraq ranked eighth among crude oil suppliers to the U.S. market in the last quarter of 2025, with an average of around 3 million barrels per month. Meanwhile, the latest data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) placed Iraq seventh among suppliers in July.

He stressed that higher rankings in some weekly reports are the result of shipment clustering over short periods and do not reflect Iraq’s true standing when measured by longer-term averages.

Regarding future exports, al-Shatri said Iraq would continue supplying U.S. companies in line with its approved marketing policy, ensuring stable and consistent exports alongside other key markets, particularly in Asia and Europe. Export volumes, he added, fluctuate based on pricing advantages and contractual commitments.

“The recent weekly increase does not represent a strategic shift towards the U.S. market,” he said, “but rather reflects temporary logistical and operational circumstances.”

Al-Shatri reaffirmed that SOMO’s strategy is centred on market diversification, maintaining balance across export destinations, and ensuring continuity of oil exports in a manner that safeguards Iraq’s national interests and oil revenues.

He also highlighted the broader economic impact, noting that stable oil exports to the United States help strengthen trade and economic relations between Baghdad and Washington, particularly in the energy sector. Such stability, he said, could encourage greater U.S. investment in Iraq’s oil and energy industries, supporting economic development, technology transfer and long-term sectoral stability.

Al-Shatri's remarks comes after the EIA reported last Sunday that Iraq exported an average of 75,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil to the United States, a decline of 360,000 bpd compared with the previous week, when exports stood at 435,000 bpd.



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