Iraq, Turkey revive Ceyhan oil corridor with interim pipeline deal

ISTANBUL/BAGHDAD – Iraq and Turkey signed a one-year agreement on Saturday to resume large-scale crude exports through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline to the Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, as the two countries work towards a broader long-term energy partnership.

The agreement guarantees transit capacity of up to 750,000 barrels per day and is intended to ensure continued operation of the export route while negotiations continue on a permanent pipeline accord.

Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said the arrangement would allow effective use of the pipeline until a new long-term agreement is concluded.

“While our efforts continue toward a new long-term agreement for this pipeline, we have implemented this transit arrangement covering a daily capacity of 750,000 barrels,” Bayraktar said in a post on X.

Iraqi Oil Minister Bassem Mohammed Khudair al-Abadi said the agreement would remain in force for one year while Baghdad and Ankara finalise a wider framework covering cooperation in the oil, electricity and water sectors.

The Iraq-Turkey pipeline, which links Iraq’s northern oilfields to the Turkish Mediterranean export terminal at Ceyhan, has operated far below capacity since 2023 after exports from Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region were halted following legal and commercial disputes involving Baghdad, Erbil and Ankara. Limited exports resumed last year.

Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi described the agreement as “an important strategic milestone” that would help ensure uninterrupted Iraqi oil exports while strengthening economic cooperation with Turkey.

The deal comes as Iraq seeks to diversify its export routes following repeated disruptions to Gulf shipping since the outbreak of the US-Iran war in February.

Before the conflict, Iraq exported around 3.5 million barrels of crude per day, most of it through southern terminals on the Gulf. Exports via the Ceyhan pipeline currently stand at around 200,000 barrels per day, meaning the agreement is expected to substantially increase northern export volumes, though not fully restore pre-2023 flows.

The signing follows talks in Ankara this week between Prime Minister Zaidi and Turkish officials on energy, trade, security, transport and water management.

The two sides are also studying longer-term infrastructure projects, including a pipeline linking Iraq’s southern oilfields with Ceyhan and Syria’s Mediterranean port of Baniyas, although no timetable has been announced.