Iraq’s cabinet has approved a series of measures aimed at diversifying the country's crude export routes and boosting production, including reviving plans to build a new pipeline through Syria to the Mediterranean Sea.
In a flurry of oil and gas sector decisions announced late on Saturday, the cabinet has approved signing of a memorandum of understanding with Syria to move the oil pipeline plans forward.
The director general of Basra Oil Company has been authorised to sign the initial agreement with Syria’s Ministry of Energy on “establishing a pipeline project linking Iraqi oil production to global export markets via the Mediterranean,” according to a statement.
The move would give Iraq its second direct oil export outlet to the Mediterranean in decades. Upon completion, the new pipeline will help Iraq reduce reliance on the Gulf export channels as well as the Iraq-Turkey pipeline to Ceyhan, which has faced repeated disruptions.
Iraq and Syria have discussed reviving oil ties since the toppling of Bashar Al Asad. A pipeline once carried Iraqi crude from Kirkuk to Baniyas on the Syrian coast, but it was shut down due to war and sanctions. With regional diplomacy warming in recent years, Baghdad has sought to reconnect energy infrastructure with neighbours to secure more stable export options.
For Iraq, a Syrian route offers a strategic alternative at a time when exports through Turkey remain politically sensitive, and when Iraq is targeting higher output under Opec+ agreements. For Syria, the project could mean transit fees, infrastructure investment, and closer economic integration with Iraq after years of isolation.
The Cabinet statement did not give details about the pipeline’s capacity, completion timeframe, or how it will be financed.
Among the other energy sector decisions on Saturday, the cabinet also authorised the oil minister to sign an MoU with a consortium of ConocoPhillips, TI Capital and Novaterra. The initial pact allows discussions to move forward on assessing exploration and development potential in the Akkas gas field in western Iraq and surrounding areas.
Akkas, near the Syrian border, is one of Iraq’s largest undeveloped gas fields and is seen as key to reducing gas imports.
The cabinet also approved the ministry of oil's plans for the integrated Qayyarah project in northern Iraq as part of efforts to upgrade oil infrastructure and raise production rates.
Iraq also approved plans for integrated field management and engineering contracts at the West Qurna-2 oil field, operated by Basra Oil Company.
The package of decisions signals Baghdad’s broader strategy to expand upstream development, add new export corridors, and bring in international companies to develop gas and oil fields as domestic demand and export targets grow.
During his visit to Washington this month, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi secured energy deals with US companies worth $200 billion, Oil Minister Bassem Khudair announced last week.
These deals, still at MoU stage, are designed to boost Iraqi crude production and help the country reach gas self-sufficiency targets, Mr Khudair added.
Iraq is already on the verge of a significant increase in its oil production and export capacity, and is engaged in “serious and constructive talks” with Opec aimed at increasing the country’s crude output quota, the Minister said in his remarks to Iraqi News Agency.
“The government remains committed to securing the export share Iraq deserves, while taking into account the exceptional circumstances the country has endured as a result of wars and the destruction of its infrastructure,” he said at the time.
Iraq, Opec’s second-largest producer, has been one of the producers hardest hit by the Iran conflict, with the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz choking the country's oil production. It's oil exports plunged from about 4.2 million bpd in February to about 1.45 million bpd in May, Opec data shows.
However, the government is pursuing its “strategic vision to develop Iraq's oil and gas sectors”. It remains on track to achieve its target of natural gas self-sufficiency by 2030 through executing new projects in the sector, the minister added.
