Mubasher: Iraq has increased oil exports from the southern Basra region by 200,000 barrels per day to make up for a shortfall from the northern Kirkuk fields, as reported by Reuters on Saturday.

The output from the northern Kirkuk region fell this week in the course of military operations to take it back from Kurdish fighters who have been there since 2014.

The Iraqi oil minister, Jabar Al Luaibi said in a statement that the increase in Basra exports keeps Iraq’s total output within the quota agreed with the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

According to the minister, 200,000 barrels per day will be shipped from Basra export terminal until the northern oil output goes back to its previous level.

Basra radulae oil exports exceed 3.2 million barrels per day, the news agency noted.

It was reported last week that crude oil output in Kirkuk has tumbled when two fields halted production as the Iraqi government troops pushed back Kurdish forces to regain control over the disputed area.

The Kurdish KAR Group stopped pumping crude at the Avana and Bai Hassan deposits after technicians failed to report for work and security guards left amid the fighting, according to an official from the North Oil Company.

Bloomberg said that the halt could affect 275,000 oil barrels per day in output.

Meanwhile, the Russian energy minister Alexander Novak recently said that Russian companies will be able to continue their projects in Iraq, despite the conflicts, according to Russian News Agency (TASS).

"Our companies continue to work for today and we believe that they will be able to go on with the implementation of their projects," the minister stated.