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DMEA COMMENTARY DMEA

Iraqi oil minister orders ramp-up

at Baiji oil refinery

Iraq has announced ambitious plans for its refining sector in recent years and has a

strong incentive to expand capacity, but implementation has proved difficult

IRAQ IRAQI Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar Ismail “The 170,000 bpd Northern Plant unit
last week ordered the processing capacity of requires significantly more repair work, though
WHAT: the Sumood oil refinery in Baiji to be raised to the government has optimistically set a comple-
Iraq’s oil ministry has 280,000 barrels per day (bpd). tion date of 2023,” Simm said.
ordered the capacity In a statement, Ismail said throughput was
of the Sumood refinery currently at 75,000 bpd but was expected to Ambitious plans
to be raised to 140,000 reach 140,000 bpd over the coming few months. After years of conflict and economic difficul-
bpd within months, and The 280,000 bpd level should be achieved “as ties, Iraq’s only fully functional refinery is the
eventually 280,000 bpd. soon as possible,” he said, without providing a 210,000 bpd Shuaiba plant near Basra. Shuaiba
timeframe for getting to this goal. is undergoing expansion work to raise its capac-
WHY: Sumood was once Iraq’s second-largest refin- ity to 280,000 bpd, and Japan’s JGC was hired last
The refinery in Baiji was ery, operating at a rate of 310,000 bpd. month to build fluid catalytic cracking, vacuum
significantly damaged “But having been severely damaged during distillation and diesel desulphurisation units at
during the ISIS invasion the ISIS invasion and occupation, and again the site, for $3.75bn.
and occupation and when when it was retaken by Iraqi forces, the unit’s While Shuaiba meets fuel needs in Iraq’s
it was retaken by Iraqi throughput capacity has fallen to just 75,000 south, the 140,000 bpd Daura refinery supplies
forces. bpd,” Ian Simm, principal advisor at consultancy the growing market in Baghdad. The Sumood
IGM Energy, told NewsBase. refinery’s restoration will help take some of the
WHAT NEXT: Production currently comes mainly from burden off Daura.
Iraq has long struggled the 70,000 bpd Salahuddin-2 unit, but the min- Iraq is also building the new Karbala refin-
to advance refining istry’s talk of raising capacity to 140,000 bpd ery south-west of Baghdad, which will handle
projects, amid conflict suggests the restart of the Salahuddin-1 unit, up to 200,000 bpd of oil. That project was first
and economic and where hydrogen and gasoline facilities have been proposed back in 2007. The oil ministry pre-
financing difficulties. reconstructed, according to Simm. dicted last year that the plant would be ready in

P4 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 35 03•September•2020