(22
– 28 June 2002)
The volume of Iraqi oil
exports under the United Nations oil-for-food programme remained almost
unchanged from the previous week’s total, standing at 8 million barrels in
the week ending 28 June. There
were three loadings from Mina al-Bakr terminal, corresponding to 5.1 million
barrels of oil, and two loadings from Ceyhan terminal, corresponding to 2.9
million barrels. With an average price of approximately €23.75 (euros) or
$23.35 per barrel, the week’s exports generated an estimated €190 million
or $185 million in revenue, raising
the overall estimated revenue in current phase XII of the programme to €699
million or $697 million.
During
the week in review, the United Nations oil overseers approved an additional
eight new oil purchase contracts, bringing the overall total to 118,
corresponding to 226 million barrels of oil, of which 124 million barrels are
for Basrah light and 102 million barrels for Kirkuk crude. Since the beginning
of phase XII on 30 May 2002, the total volume of oil exported has amounted to
29.7 million barrels. The phase ends on 25 November 2002.
Owing
to a revenue shortfall, 991 humanitarian supply contracts, worth about $2.2
billion, while approved by the United Nations, are currently lacking in funds
and cannot be further processed. The
affected sectors are: food
handling with $348 million; electricity with $346 million; food with $343
million; housing with $303 million; agriculture with $284 million; health with
$184 million; telecommunication and transportation with $173 million; water
and sanitation with $118 million and; education with $107 million.
Iraq
has exported more than 3 billion barrels of oil at an estimated $38.6 billion
and €18.3 billion ($16.3 billion) in revenue since the beginning of the
programme on 10 December 1996. The
humanitarian programme receives 72 per cent of the oil proceeds, with 59 per
cent allocated to the 15 central and southern governorates and 13 per cent to
the three northern governorates. To date, some $35.6 billion worth of
contracts for the purchase of various humanitarian supplies and equipment have
been both approved by the Security Council’s 661 sanctions committee and
“fast-tracked” by the Office of the Iraq Programme (OIP), including about
$3.2 billion worth of oil industry spare parts and equipment.
Of the approved contracts, over $23 billion worth of supplies and
equipment have been delivered to Iraq, including $1.4 billion worth oil spare
parts and equipment, while another $10.2 billion worth of supplies and
equipment, for which funds have been available, are in the production and
delivery pipeline, including $1.7 billion worth of oil industry equipment.
During the week, the 661 Committee
released from hold 5 contracts worth $3.6 million, while placing on hold 25
new contracts worth $59 million. Currently, there are 2,170 contracts on hold
for the purchase of various humanitarian supplies and equipment, valued at
approximately $5.3 billion. Of these, 1,484 contracts worth about $4.58
billion are for humanitarian supplies and 686 contracts worth $749 million are
for oil industry spare parts and equipment.
Paragraph
18 of the new set of procedures for the processing and review of contracts for
humanitarian supplies and equipment under Security Council resolution 1409
(2002) requires that contracts currently on hold be divided into two
categories. The first category
would comprise contracts that contain “dual use” item(s), as determined by
the United Nations Secretariat experts, which will be returned to the
submitting Mission or United Nations agency for possible re-submission under
the new procedures. The second
category would include all other contracts currently on hold and will be
re-circulated by OIP under the new procedures.
It is foreseen that upon the completion of these processes, there will
no longer be contracts on hold.
