Iraq's Oil Minister: Kirkuk-Baniyas Pipeline Would Add 2.25 Million Bpd of Export Capacity Outside Hormuz

Iraqi Oil Minister Basim Mohammed Khudair al-Abadi said on Saturday, 7 Shahrivar 1405 (August 29, 2026), according to Shafaq News, at a meeting attended by Deputy Oil Minister for Extraction Affairs Nasir Aziz and the directors general of state run South Oil Company and North Oil Company, that Iraq is pushing ahead with a strategic oil pipeline that could open new export routes for up to 2.25 million barrels per day. He directed officials to accelerate technical and commercial arrangements and finalize preparations for signing the contract.

According to the report, the proposed pipeline would run from Basra in southern Iraq, through Haditha, to Fishkhabur in northern Iraq, with a separate section connecting Haditha to Baniyas on Syria's Mediterranean coast. Iraq's oil ministry also reviewed plans for the project to be carried out by a consortium including US companies Chevron and TI Capital, alongside Qatar's UCC. Iraq and Syria signed a memorandum of understanding on July 17, 2026 (26 Tir 1405), under US sponsorship, to reactivate the pipeline and allow Iraqi crude to reach Mediterranean ports through Syrian territory.