Watchlist Update: DNO (DNO.OL)

Another push toward oil export restart – will this time be different for DNO?

After months of deadlock and false starts, recent days have brought a flurry of high-level meetings between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) – signalling that an agreement to restart oil exports may finally be within reach.

Delegations from Iraq’s Finance and Oil Ministries, SOMO, and senior KRG officials have been shuttling between Erbil and Baghdad over the past few days. According to multiple reports (Zoom News, Draw Media, BasNews, Ava), these meetings have touched on all the critical sticking points: export volumes, internal revenue transfers, IOC compensation, and direct salary payments for KRG civil servants.

What’s different this time is the pace. Talks have clearly intensified, with technical and political delegations holding near-daily sessions. According to Ava News, both sides are now "closer than ever" to a deal that would see the KRG supply 280,000 barrels per day via SOMO in exchange for monthly budget support and company payments. BasNews reports that under the proposed arrangement, Baghdad would pay IOCs directly – a major development that could bypass some of the political gridlock seen previously.

APIKUR: Ready to Restart

On Friday night, APIKUR – the industry group representing international oil companies operating in Kurdistan – reiterated its commitment to restart exports immediately once a written agreement is in place. They reaffirmed their long-standing willingness to coordinate exports through SOMO and proposed that companies receive their entitlements in kind at Ceyhan.

This recent development is obviously relevant for DNO, one of our core holdings in the Gullinbursti Dividend Portfolio.

Why It Matters