Iraq intends to build a new offshore pipeline at a cost exceeding $416 million, to support crude oil exports from the southern ports between 2025 and 2024.
In press statements on Sunday, the Director General of the Basra Oil Company, Bassem Abdul Karim, said that pipeline was the third of its kind in the northern Gulf in Basra Governorate.
The 48-inch pipeline will have a capacity of 2 million barrels per day (bpd), and will be built by the Dutch company Boskalis.
Abdul Karim noted that the ministry was currently working with Boskalis to put the final touches on the contract to construct the pipeline.
He added that the project will support strengthening the infrastructure for exporting crude oil and raising the export capacity of Al-Faw oil depots and the port of Basra to 5 million barrels per day by the end of 2025.
The minister also explained that Iraqi crude oil export rates from southern ports were currently stable at a ceiling of 3.4 million barrels per day, produced by oil companies in the governorates of Basra, Maysan and Dhi Qar, while crude oil production levels from the fields of Basra Governorate alone reach 3.2 million barrels per day.
After a 10-year hiatus due to sabotage and terrorist acts, the Iraqi Oil Ministry announced on Saturday the resumption of pumping petroleum products into the Baiji-Kirkuk pipeline.
The ministry said in a statement that the company’s technical and engineering teams have successfully completed maintenance and rehabilitation work on the pipeline.
