Iraq opens overland oil route through Syria and starts $1.5 bn pipeline to diversify exports

Iraq has resumed exporting crude via Syria after more than a decade, moving oil overland by tanker trucks to the Mediterranean port of Baniyas. The shift was prompted by severe disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, which have curtailed tanker movements and reduced Iraq’s output from 3‑4 million barrels per day to about 1.3‑1.5 million bpd, threatening the government’s oil‑dependent revenue.

At the same time, Iraq began construction of a 700‑kilometre, $1.5 bn Basra‑to‑Haditha pipeline designed to carry 2.5 million barrels per day. Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al‑Sudani said the line will allow crude to be diverted to export points in Turkey (Ceyhan), Syria (Baniyas), Jordan (Aqaba) and to domestic refineries, providing a strategic buffer against future maritime chokepoint disruptions and diversifying Iraq’s export routes.