The Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline will be ready for pumping within two weeks.
The Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline will be ready for pumping within two weeks.
2026-06-24
Shafaq News – Kirkuk
On Wednesday, an official source at the state-owned North Oil Company revealed that the Iraqi-Turkish pipeline extending from Kirkuk to the Turkish port of Ceyhan has been prepared and equipped, confirming that trial pumping through the pipeline will begin within two weeks in preparation for resuming exports in a stable manner.
The source told Shafaq News Agency that “the North Oil Company has completed all the technical and engineering work related to preparing the Iraqi-Turkish pipeline, and it is now technically ready to begin pumping operations, which will be initiated to test the efficiency of the pipeline and ensure the stability of transportation and export operations in a near-complete manner.”
He added that “the company also succeeded in restarting the Kirkuk-Baiji-Haditha-Basra pipeline, which represents one of the strategic routes for transporting crude oil within the country,” explaining that “the pipeline, which has a diameter of 42 inches, will contribute to transporting crude oil produced from the southern fields to the gathering stations in Kirkuk, and then pumping the quantities through the Iraqi-Turkish pipeline towards the port of Ceyhan.”
The source indicated that “reactivating this route will provide greater flexibility in managing the movement of crude oil between the governorates, as well as enhancing Iraq’s export capabilities through the northern outlet,” noting that the technical and logistical preparations have been completed, pending the completion of the necessary procedures to begin pumping operations.
He stressed that operating the two lines together will be an important step to support the oil infrastructure and increase the efficiency of the crude oil transport network, which will positively impact Iraqi exports to global markets via the Turkish port of Ceyhan.
Iraq had asked Turkey to extend the Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline agreement for at least a year, in a move aimed at giving both sides more time to negotiate a new agreement regulating oil exports through this vital route.
The current agreement for the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline expires on July 27, after decades of regulating oil exports between Iraq and Turkey, while the two sides continue to discuss a draft of a new agreement governing export operations in the next phase.
shafaq.com
