Iraq and Jordan revive the Basra to Aqaba oil pipeline plan as southern Iraqi crude exports slump

With the Strait of Hormuz crisis continuing, Iraq and Jordan are again studying a roughly 1,600 km oil pipeline to link Basra to the port of Aqaba, a plan dormant since 2019. The United States is encouraging regional countries to find alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz.

Iraq, OPEC's second largest producer, ships most of its crude from the southern port of Basra and has limited alternatives. According to reports, exports from Iraq's southern fields have fallen by about 70 percent during the recent fighting.

The development matters for Iran because it shows how the Hormuz disruption is reshaping the entire map of Persian Gulf energy export routes.