ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq is advancing plans to expand and diversify its oil export infrastructure, including a proposed pipeline to Syria’s Mediterranean coast, the Ministry of Oil said on Thursday.
In a statement, the ministry stated that they are working to build an oil pipeline to the port of Baniyas in Syria, as part of broader efforts to strengthen the country’s export resilience amid regional tensions.
The ministry added that efforts are underway to boost export capacity through Turkey, noting that “efforts are ongoing to increase export capacity to Turkey's Ceyhan port to 650,000 barrels of oil per day.”
It also provided an update on the key Kirkuk-Fishkhabur pipeline, stating that it is currently undergoing rehabilitation, adding that "its initial transport capacity will reach 350,000 barrels per day.”
The ministry's remarks come amid the closure of the Strait of Hormuz due to the ongoing US and Israeli military campaign against Iran that started late last month.
Since then, the Iraqi federal government has been scrambling to find alternative routes to export its crude, which accounts for around 90 percent of the country’s revenues, and reduce reliance on chokepoints in the Gulf.