A bomb attack in the northern province of Nineveh halted oil flow through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline, which carries a quarter of Iraq’s crude exports, a spokesman for Iraq’s oil ministry said on Wednesday.

Reuters, quoting Oil Ministry spokesman Asim Jihad, reported that the attack occurred on Tuesday night, but oil flow is expected to resume in a “few days” after fixing the damage.

“A bomb attack … has led to an explosion in the pipeline. There was no fire only an oil leak so flow was halted,” Jihad said. “We have enough stocks in storage for exports.”

The pipeline has a capacity of 1.6 million barrels per day and typically pumps 500,000 bpd.

There remained some confusion as to whether the blast was the result of a bomb or a technical fault.

(Source: Reuters)

Iraq’s Oil Ministry is studying an offer submitted by a private a Saudi company to rebuild the idled Iraq-Saudi oil export pipeline, ministry spokesman Asim Jihad told Reuters.

Jihad and a representative of the Saudi firm, Ali Mahir, said the offer proposed involving Japan’s Mitsubishi and a Hungarian company identified as OTV, which took part in the construction of the original 626 km (390 mile) pipeline, which had a capacity of 1.7-million barrels per day. Alsumaria TV says the proposal involves Mitsubishi along with Bulgarian and American companies.

“We welcome any cooperation with Saudi Arabia in the oil sector to enhance bilateral relations. The offer is under discussion,” Jihad said.

(Sources: Alsumaria TV, Reuters)

Iraq has discussed with Egypt the issue of linking up to a gas pipeline running from Egypt through other Arab states as a way to export its gas, Reuters has reported.

The Arab Gas Pipeline is aimed at supplying customers in Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Turkey, and potentially Europe through Egypt.

(Source: Reuters)

Iraq’s oil pipelines are decades past their use-by-date. “We are afraid of anything happening to them,” said Deputy Oil Minister Ahmad Shamma, according to Iraq Oil Report.

US concerns for the ageing infrastructure were pushed as early as 2008, but now billions of dollars are being invested to create new pipelines to protect Iraqi oil exports. Shamma indicated that containment might have been lost due to corrosion, but said that “We will test them and see what we can do with them. We will operate them as long as it’s possible.”

Despite billions of dollars being invested in the oil industry in Iraq, no new pipelines have yet been developed. There have been reports of new pipelines to Turkey, routes to Israel, and connecting to Europe, and even pipeline deals with Iran.

One thing is for sure, with 95% of Iraq’s revenue coming from oil, a major shutdown of its existing pipelines before new ones are up-and-running would be a disaster.

(Sources: Iraq Oil Report)

The oil pipeline from the south oil reservoirs in Nasiriya to the reservoir at Kut has been re-opened, according to a report from the National Iraqi News Agency.

Head of Wassit Provincial Council, Mahmoud Abdul-Ridha Talal, told (NINA): “The re-operation of the oil pipeline carrying oil between the two provinces will solve the serious and long-standing shortage of affordable vehicles fuel.”

“The pipeline will pump 20 m liters a day into Kut’s reservoir from Basra and Maysan, in addition to the quantities afforded according to contracts signed by the province with a private company”, he added.

(Source: National Iraqi News Agency)

The new deal between Iraq’s central government and Turkey on the Ceyhan pipeline reportedly blocks the export of oil and gas from Kurdistan without Baghdad’s approval.

Both AKnews and Azzaman report that Turkey’s Energy Minister, Taner Yildiz, has agreed not to transport Kurdish oil and gas unless Baghdad agrees.

Speaking to AKnews, Ali Hussein Balo, an advisor in to KRG’s Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources said “any agreements signed by Hussein Shahristani are unconstitutional and he does not have the right to prevent Kurdistan’s gas from being exported to Europe through Nabucco pipeline. [He] has exceeded his authority. Signing agreements with foreign countries is not part of his authorities and falls under the authority of the parliament.”

The Iraqi Oil Minister renewed a contract with Turkey to transport crude oil through the Turkish port of Ceyhan for 15 years, at volumes of more than one million barrels per day (bpd). The deal is expected to strengthen economic relations between Baghdad and Ankara.

AKnews reports that Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said in Baghdad on Sunday that “the Ceyhan pipeline is the only line that carries Iraqi crude oil extracted from the northern fields of Kirkuk”.

For his part, the Turkish Energy Minister Teiner Al-Daz [Taner Yildiz] said, “Turkey still supports Iraq’s oil and seeks to develop oil and bilateral trade.”

“From now on”, he continued, “there will be no confiscation of Iraqi oil passing through Turkey as the Turkish government has provided its guarantee on this issue”. He also added that the transportation fees were raised from 75 cents per barrel to $1 per barrel.

(Sources: AKnews, Aswat al-Iraq, Today’s Zaman)

An initial agreement between Iraq and Syria to build a pipeline to the Mediterranean envisions one crude pipeline with a capacity of 1.5 million barrels per day and another with a capacity of 1.25m bpd, an Iraqi government spokesman said yesterday.

Ali Al Dabbagh said that the larger of the two pipelines would carry heavier crudes and the other would export light crudes.

A third pipeline foreseen in the possible project would be for gas which could be used to operate pumping stations.

The pipelines would originate at oil fields near Kirkuk in northern Iraq and terminate at Syria’s port of Banias [Baniyas] on the Mediterranean Sea.

Al Dabbagh said that the government had approved the plan, while Deputy Oil Minister, Abdul Kareem Luaibi, said earlier in the week that the ministry intended to issue a tender for the project within two months.

(Sources: Tehran Times, Gulf Daily News)