Brief: Iraq Eyes Syria for Expanded Pipeline Export Capacity

Iraq and Syria discuss restarting a mothballed 300 kb/d pipeline, expanding Iraq's efforts to restore export capacity to the Mediterranean.

April 29, 2025 • Est. Reading Time: 3 minutes

Mobius Intel Brief:

Iraq’s efforts to add ~3 MMb/d of pipeline export capacity before the end of the decade progressed with two developments in April.

Key Intel

  • Iraq aims to expand production and export capacity to 7 MMb/d by 2030 from current levels of ~4 MMb/d and ~3.7 MMb/d, respectively.

  • Syria Talks: Last week, Baghdad opened discussions with the new Syrian regime to restore a mothballed 300 kb/d pipeline to the Mediterranean port of Baniyas. The latest discussions between Syria’s post-Assad regime and the Iraqi government emphasize Baghdad’s interest in Mediterranean export routes that a) reduce Iraq’s exposure to disruption risks in the Strait of Hormuz (Iran), b) provide more direct access to European and other Atlantic demand centers, and c) ease bottlenecks on Iraqi production growth before 2030.

  • April Agreement: Earlier this month, Iraq signed an agreement with Italian contractor Micoperi and Turkish firm Esta to constrcut a 2.4 MMb/d subsea pipeline to export crude from Iraq’s southern oil fields to offshore export terminals in the Persian Gulf.

  • Ongoing Kurdish Negotiations: Negotiations between Baghdad, Turkey, and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to restore exports through the Iraq-Turkey crude pipeline (1.4 MMb/d capacity) to the Turkish port of Ceyhan slowed in April as oil companies represented by APIKUR demanded guaranteed payments for past and future shipments before exports could resume. Exports through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline halted in March 2023 over a legal dispute between Baghdad and the Turkish government, costing Iraq an estimated $20 billion in lost export revenue.

  • Basrah-Haditha: The Iraqi cabinet approved the 2.25 MMb/d Basrah-Haditha pipeline project in Dec 2024, tapping financing from the Iraq-China agreement. Construction will commence upon final approval from the Iraqi oil ministry with operations expected two years thereafter.

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