Throughout the ISIS war, US officials have made it clear that one of the key goals of their war was to prevent the Islamists from exporting oil, a key source of revenue. Oil production in their territory is mostly run privately, through local groups, but officials insist ISIS is still, after a year of airstrikes, making $50 million monthly on the exports.
That’s the largest single source of revenue for the group, and continues in spite of the many attacks on the oil industry in northeast Syria, and despite the precipitous drop in the price of oil in the past year.
Officials say that ISIS is often selling the oil at a substantial discount to market prices, in some cases as low as $10 a barrel. The smugglers then get the oil out of the country, usually by way of major oil export hub Turkey, and sell it for a substantial profit.
The estimates on production are about 30,000 barrels per day in Syria, and 10,000 to 20,000 barrels per day in Iraq. The Iraqi production is largely not being exported by ISIS, but rather is being refined for internal use. The ISIS production in Iraq, interesting, is being run by the employees of Iraq’s state oil company who worked there before the fall of Mosul, and they are getting paid substantial rates by ISIS, up to $1,000 per day, to keep it flowing.
30-40% discounts due to losing on the ground, ammunition, personnel and Toyota. Israeli, Turkish, European mafia love discounts.
"After a year of airstrikes". This is what's waiting for Putin one year down the road (if he's still in power!).
What's the matter, Mr. NSA Neocon? You must be beside yourself that your beloved government's air power is unable to stop terrorists from pumping and selling oil? Doesn't your precious NSA know what the terrorists are doing? Tell us again how vacuuming up every American's e-mails crushes this mother of all terrorist groups? Your game is up, because Putin has exposed your government's appalling lie for what it is — a shameful effort to destroy nations in the name of platitudes endeared to the gullible American masses.
Just another indication that the U.S. policy is to encourage the creation of failed states in the ME and is actually covertly supporting ISIS. There is no way that hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil are being sold by ISIS without the U.S. conveniently turning a blind eye. The same for the long caravans of ISIS' toyota pickup trucks parading around untouched by U.S. bombing campaign that has been going on for over a year.
Time for RUSSIA to bomb the refineries! America will not do it as they and the Saudis will have to fund ISIS, As for the Syrian crude Only ONE place it can be going TURKEY!
A fascinating example of the market actually working. It's good to know that we in the West won't go short of oil despite our idiotic sanctions policies.