Iraq seeks to diversify oil export routes away from Hormuz

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi announced that he discussed increasing his country’s oil exports to Europe during his visits to France and Germany to diversify export routes and reduce reliance on the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran closed following the start of a military conflict with the United States and Israel.

Al-Zaidi said during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Berlin that Iraq wants to expand and diversify its oil export sources.

In light of the disruptions to maritime shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, al-Zaidi noted that Iraq cannot continue to rely on a single waterway.

The prime minister explained that he discussed oil exports to Europe with Merz, as well as with French President Emmanuel Macron, whom he met on Monday in Paris.

Crude oil sales constitute about 90 percent of Iraq’s revenue, but its exports have been disrupted since the outbreak of the war between Iran, the United States, and Israel last February.

Before the war, Iraq produced about four million barrels per day and exported an average of 3.4 million barrels, mostly through the Strait of Hormuz. The majority of its oil exports went to East Asia, with China and India being its largest importers.

The disruption to marine shipping has compelled Baghdad to transport crude oil using tanker trucks to the Baniyas port in Syria and through a pipeline to the Turkish port of Ceyhan. However, these alternative routes can only handle a small fraction of the export volume that was previously managed via sea transport.

Al-Zaidi said that Baghdad could largely increase its oil exports via the Mediterranean to supply European and American markets.

The Iraqi government seeks to raise oil production to ten million barrels per day, believing that a large part of it, or nearly half, could go to European and Western countries.

Iraq and Germany are expected to reach an understanding regarding crude oil exports in exchange for German technology and equipment, according to al-Zaidi.

Mertz noted that the economic sector is the main drive of cooperation between the two countries. He added that several German companies are currently involved in the development of Iraq’s energy industry.