November 6, 2001
The UN oil-for-food programme in Iraq faces a shortfall of about 1.63 billion dollars in the current five-month phase, the United Nations said, after Iraq's oil exports slipped again last week.
The volume exported under UN supervision fell from 14.9 million the previous week to 14.6 million barrels, the office administering the programme said.
In the week ending November 2, there were five loadings at Iraq's Gulf port of Mina al-Bakr and four at the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, the only export outlets authorised under UN sanctions imposed on Iraq in 1990.
The average price of Iraqi crude during the week was about 16.82 dollars (18.58 euros) a barrel and revenue was estimated at 215 million dollars (237 million euros), the office said.
Revenue so far in the current phase of the programme, which runs from July 4 to November 30, is about 4.96 billion euros, or 4.49 billion dollars.
With the price of Iraqi oil falling from 24.30 dollars a barrel in the past six weeks, the office said revenue for the phase was expected to reach only about 5.38 billion dollars.
Only 72 percent of that -- about 3.87 billion dollars - is available to pay for imports under the programme, compared with a forecast budget for the current phase of 5.5 billion dollars.
Of the revenue, 59 percent is used to purchase humanitarian supplies and oil equipment in government-controlled areas in central and southern Iraq and 13 percent for the northern Kurdish region, where goods are distributed by the UN.
Another 25 percent is used to compensate Kuwait for war damages, and the remaining three percent covers the administrative costs of the programme and of the UN commission monitoring Iraq's disarmament.
Iraq has sold 240.6 million barrels of crude in the current phase, the 10th since the programme was set up in December 1996 to alleviate the impact of sanctions on ordinary Iraqis.
Orders are outstanding for another 146.3 million barrels, including two new contracts approved by the independent oil overseers last week, the office said.
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