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Int’l Companies Invited to Invest in New Pipeline

Iraq’s Ministry of Oil has invited local and international companies to participate in the execution of the oil export pipeline extension, which extends from the Kirkuk oilfield to the Iraqi-Turkish border, and will run side-by-side with the old strategic pipeline to the Turkish port of Ceyhan (pictured).

Mr. Assim Jihad, the spokesman of the Ministry of Oil, said that the pipeline will run for over 350 kilometers, and will be 48 inches in diameter.

It will be able to transport 1 million barrels per day (bpd) and will be built on a BOOT basis investment method, which includes the construction, property, operation and property transfer.

The government and the ministry does not bare or pay any money or spending over the project at the current time, but after the operation.

The project includes also the construction of a gas pipeline, pumps and reservoirs, in addition to the other completed accessories and services. The contract also commits the winner consortium companies to share with the local companies with 25% or more of the project proportion within the consortium.

Mr. Jihad said also that the oil projects company have determined the 24th of January 2018 as the last date for the companies to present their participation letter.

(Source: Ministry of Oil)

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Oil Ministry Declares its Final Exports for November

By John Lee.

Iraq’s Ministry of Oil has announced final oil exports for November of 105,050,819 barrels, giving an average for the month of 3.502 million barrels per day (bpd), considerably up on the 3.348 bpd exported in October.

These exports were shipped by 40 multinational companies from the ports of Basra, Khor Al-Omaia and the SPM’s on the Arab Gulf, with no exports registered from Kirkuk.

Revenues for the month were $6.021 billion, at an average price of $57.316 per barrel.

October export figures are available here.

(Source: Ministry of Oil)

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Petrofac wins $160m Iraq Contract

Petrofac’s Engineering & Production Services (EPS) division has secured an award worth US$160 million from Basra Oil Company (BOC), previously known as South Oil Company (SOC), for its Iraq Crude Oil Export Expansion Project (ICOEEP).

The new two-year extension reflects Petrofac’s continued delivery focus and five-year track record as the incumbent operations and maintenance service provider.

The facility, which is responsible for a significant proportion of Iraq’s oil export, is located 60 kilometres (km) offshore the Al Fao Peninsula in Southern Iraq. It comprises a central metering and manifold platform and four Single Point Moorings (SPMs) which facilitate oil export onto awaiting crude carrier tankers.

In addition, Petrofac is responsible for almost 300 km of subsea pipelines,1800 metres of subsea hose infrastructure and a marine spread comprising 14 vessels.

Mani Rajapathy, Managing Director, Engineering & Production Services East, said:

“We are delighted to continue with our role in support of this key crude export facility. Since the start of our involvement in 2012, we have exported more than 2.2 billion barrels of oil while retaining an impeccable safety record. We have also remained focused on adding value for our client through the deployment of innovative and differentiated solutions.”

Ihsan Ismaael, Director General, Basra Oil Company, said:

“Petrofac is a key partner for BOC. The team has supported us over the last five years to significantly increase export from the ICOEEP facility and we look forward to continuing our relationship into 2019.”

(Source: Petrofac)

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Oil Exports Rise Again in October

By John Lee.

Iraq’s Ministry of Oil has announced preliminary oil exports for November of 105,050,804 barrels, giving an average for the month of 3.502 million barrels per day (bpd), considerably up on the 3.348 bpd exported in October.

The exports were entirely from the southern terminals, with no exports from Kirkuk via Ceyhan.

Revenues for the month were  $6.008 billion at an average price of $57.194 per barrel.

October export figures can be found here.

(Source: Ministry of Oil)

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New Pipeline to Export Kirkuk Oil via Ceyhan

By John Lee.

Iraq’s Oil Ministry has announced that it will build a new pipeline from Baiji to Fishkabur, enabling Kirkuk oil to be exported again from Turkey’s Ceyhan port (pictured).

Kirkuk’s oil was previously being exported via the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) pipeline to Ceyhan, but this has been on hold since Baghdad took control of the area.

Plans to rehabilitate Baghdad’s existing oil pipeline to Turkey, which was badly damaged by militants in 2014, have been scrapped.

(Sourced: Ministry of Oil, Rudaw)

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AISSOT first Crude Oil Shipment from Iraq

Following from the recent launch of its new Iraq-based bunkering operation, Al Iraqia Shipping Services and Oil Trading (AISSOT) has announced its first shipment of crude oil from Iraq.

The company said it shipped its first 2 million bbl of crude oil on their very large crude carrier MT Basra (pictured) on November 18, “successfully completing its first loading out of Iraq ever since the end of war in Iraq.”

AISSOT, a joint-venture company of Iraqi Oil Tankers Company (IOTC) and Arab Maritime Petroleum Transport Company (AMPTC), says it now plans to become a leading crude oil carrier for OPEC’s second-largest producer by acquiring 80 tankers.

(Source: AISSOT)

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Iraq’s Southern Oil Exports “Close to Record High”

By John Lee.

Reuters reports that oil exports from southern Iraq have risen to close to a record high.

It cites industry sources as saying that exports in the first 20 days of November averaged about 3.50 million bpd, up 150,000 bpd from October’s average.

The current monthly record of 3.51 million bpd was achieved in December 2016, immediately before an OPEC cut took effect.

The news agency says that exports from Iraq’s northern fields have averaged around 250,000 bpd month to date, down from an estimated 450,000 bpd in October and more than 500,000 bpd earlier this year.

(Source: Reuters)

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Plans to increase Kirkuk Oil Output to 1m bpd

By John Lee.

Oil Minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi [Allibi, Luiebi] (pictured) has said that Iraq plans to increase oil production at the Kirkuk oilfields to one million barrels per day.

According to Reuters, exports from Kirkuk have been on hold since Iraqi forces took back control of them from the Kurds last month.

At least three months will be needed to repair the old pipeline to Ceyhan port in Turkey. The main 600,000 bpd Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline had been offline since March 2014 following insurgent attacks.

(Source: Reuters)

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Baghdad “Looks to Take Control of KRG Oil”

By Adnan Abu Zeed for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. 

The Iraqi State Organization for Marketing Oil (SOMO) announced Nov. 2 that it is arranging with Turkey to allow SOMO to sell Iraqi crude from the disputed territories through the pipeline from Kirkuk to the Ceyhan Turkish port.

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) used to export about 500,000 barrels per day independently through Ceyhan before the Baghdad operation to retake the disputed areas in mid-October.

It was not long after the Iraqi army took over the oil fields in Kirkuk in a military operation to “impose security,” as described by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, that the federal government resumed oil pumping operations.

The operations started about a week after the clashes between governmental forces and Kurdish peshmerga forces. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Oil rushed to increase oil production, and on Oct. 23, the ministry requested the help of the British petroleum company BP in increasing production in Kirkuk oil fields to more than 700,000 barrels per day. The ministry also announced the formation of a ministerial committee to advance the oil industry in the province of Kirkuk.

Kirkuk has more than 35 billion barrels in oil reserves and a production capacity ranging from 750,000 to 1 million barrels per day. The federal government seems determined to control the oil sources, especially in Kirkuk and the disputed areas. In light of this, on Oct. 19, the Iraqi minister of oil warned all countries and international petroleum companies against signing contracts with any Iraqi party without first consulting the federal government.

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Baghdad may Export Kirkuk Oil to Iran

By John Lee.

Iraq’s State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) has reportedly confirmed that talks are ongoing between Baghdad and Tehran to export crude oil from Kirkuk to the Kermanshah refinery (pictured) in Iran.

SOMO Director Alaa al-Mussawi is quoted as saying that trucks would initially supply 15,000 barrels of crude oil per day (bpd) to the refinery, increasing to 25,000 bpd.

Kirkuk oil has until recently been exported to international markets via the Ceyhan port in Turkey.

(Source: Kurdistan 24)