Page 4 - DMEA Week 36

DMEA COMMENTARY DMEA

Iraq export expansion

focuses on Jordan

Iraq remains heavily reliant on its southern export terminals despite years of

talk about expanding routes to the south and west

IRAQ IRAQ last week announced that its oil exports a combined nameplate capacity of 1.6mn bpd,
had fallen to a five-year low in August as Bagh- with the wider, 46-inch (1,168-mm) pipe capable
WHAT: dad seeks to comply with OPEC+ output of carrying 1.1mn bpd and the narrower 40-inch
Iraq’s Gulf terminals reductions. (1,016-mm) line 500,000 bpd.
are responsible for the Total Iraqi exports were 3.02mn barrels per However, following years of sabotage and
vast majority of the day for the month, with 2.597mn bpd coming disrepair, Kirkuk-Ceyhan is rarely capable of
country’s exports, with from federally controlled areas and the remain- achieving anywhere near 500,000 bpd in total.
86% of August shipments ing 423,000 bpd from the Kurdistan Region of There is also an Erbil-controlled pipeline,
exported that way. northern Iraq, according to shipping data cited which runs from the Taq Taq field via Khurmala
by S&P Platts. and connects to Kirkuk-Ceyhan at the metering
WHY: This marks a 216,000 bpd reduction on July station in the border town of Fishkhabur. This
Trucked cargoes to exports, following Baghdad’s agreement to line was designed to carry 700,000 bpd, but
Jordan dried up this year make extra compensatory production cuts in Federal Iraqi oil would need to be put under the
amid a massive price August and September to make up for its his- control of the Kurdistan Regional Government
drop and then pandemic- toric non-compliance. Production data is yet to (KRG) to make use of the conduit.
related issues. be published, though Iraq’s quota for May, June The idea of piping crude through other
and July was 3.592mn bpd, rising to 3.804mn neighbouring countries has also been mooted at
WHAT NEXT: from August until the end of 2020. various times, with lengthy discussions having
Talks continue about a According to the data, Baghdad-controlled proved largely fruitless so far.
major planned pipeline exports comprised 2.5mn bpd through termi-
to Jordan, with Egypt nals on the Gulf coast, with 97,000 bpd from the Jordan in the middle
recently signing up to Kirkuk fields flowing by pipeline to the Turkish The recent tripartite summit between the gov-
expand the conduit into port of Ceyhan. ernments of Egypt, Iraq and Jordan saw the
its territory. Iraq has over the past decade sought to ease administrations agree to co-operate on inter-
its dependence on Gulf export infrastructure. connectivity in the fields of oil and electricity as
Exports to the north-west are piped via the well as education, agricultural greenhouses and
Kirkuk-Ceyhan Pipeline, which is often also seed production.
referred to as the Iraq-Turkey Pipeline (ITP). Following the meetings in Amman, Egyptian
This consists of two strings, which originally had Minister of Electricity Mohamed Shaker that the

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