Page 6 - MEOG Week 45 2021

MEOG PIPELINES & TRANSPORT MEOG

Iraq and Jordan continue pipe

talks with reduced budget

IRAQ/JORDAN THE governments of Iraq and Jordan remain was talked of as the sum for constructing an
in discussions over the development of a long- extended version of the line running to Egypt.
planned cross-border oil pipeline but only if Speaking to the Iraqi News Agency (INA)
costs are reduced significantly, according to an in late September, Iraqi Ambassador to Jordan
update this week from Baghdad’s Ministry of Oil Haidar Al-Athari said: “The government has
(MoO). received bids from a number of global compa-
An agreement for the conduit, known as the nies to build the pipeline that will transport Iraqi
Basra-Aqaba pipeline, was originally signed in crude to Jordan.” This follows the 2019 prequali-
2013 on a line that would transport 1mn barrels fication of interested firms.
per day (bpd) of crude from Iraq’s oil-rich Basra Noting that “practical steps” had been taken,
Governorate to the Jordanian port of Aqaba via Al-Athari added that the “concerned authorities
Haditha. in Iraq are now considering all those bids”, with-
Plans for the project date back to 1983, at out identifying any of the bidders nor indicating
which point Jordan asked the US for guarantees a timeline for a potential award.
that the pipeline would not be targeted by Israel. The project is divided into two phases: the
The MoO said that the “project is still under first phase includes installing a 700-km pipeline
technical and commercial discussion, despite the with a capacity of 2.25mn bpd from the Rumaila
negotiations reaching advanced stages, with the oilfield to Haditha, while the second phase
aim of adding the project economic value to Iraq includes installing a 900-km pipeline in Jordan
and Jordan, provided that implementation costs between Haditha and Aqaba with a capacity of
are reduced to less than $9bn”. 1mn bpd. The latter will include a spur carrying
However, this will require major cost-cutting, 150,000 bpd to Jordan’s sole refinery at Zarqa,
with cost estimates for the pipeline’s construc- which is currently undergoing an expansion
tion having been as high as $26bn based on a project to increase capacity from 100,000 bpd to
$4bn fee to develop the Iraqi portion of the line, 120,000 bpd.
with the section in Jordanian territory costing up With a gas line also planned to be built along
to $22bn. the same route, total cross-border capacity is
A price of $12bn has also been quoted for anticipated to be 1mn bpd of oil and 258mn
implementing the project, while in 2019, $18bn cubic feet (7.3mn cubic metres) per day of gas.™

Planned route of the
Basra-Aqaba pipeline.

Source: Ministry of Oil

P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 45 10•November•2021