Officials from Iraq and Türkiye have announced that the two countries have reached an agreement to extend their oil export pipeline contract for one year. The agreement comes as the 25-year natural gas export contract between Iran and Türkiye approaches its expiration, although officials from the two countries have yet to make any new statements regarding its renewal or termination.
The Iraq–Türkiye oil pipeline transports crude oil produced in Iraq’s Kirkuk region to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan and is regarded as one of Iraq’s principal routes for exporting crude oil to global markets.
The agreement was reached just days after Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ Al-Sudani visited Türkiye and held talks with senior Turkish officials. Türkiye’s Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Alparslan Bayraktar, said the deal was signed following a productive meeting with Iraqi Oil Minister Bassem Mohammed Khudair in Ankara.
In a post on X, Prime Minister Al-Sudani described the agreement as “a significant strategic milestone,” adding that it would increase the minimum export capacity through the pipeline to 750,000 barrels per day.
The decades-old contract governing the Kirkuk–Ceyhan pipeline, which carries Iraqi crude oil through one of the region’s key energy export corridors, expired last week. Under the new agreement, Iraqi and Turkish companies will begin implementing the provisions of the renewed contract.
The Iraqi government also announced that the two countries will work in parallel to finalize a comprehensive agreement covering cooperation in the fields of oil, electricity, and water resources. The Kirkuk–Ceyhan pipeline has a maximum capacity of approximately 1.5 million barrels per day, although actual throughput has remained well below its nameplate capacity in recent years.
Earlier in July, Türkiye’s Minister of Energy visited Baghdad for talks on oil and gas cooperation. Last week, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ Al-Sudani, accompanied by several cabinet ministers, traveled to Türkiye for meetings with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and other senior officials in Ankara.
During those meetings, Minister Bayraktar emphasized that Türkiye and Iraq are committed to making full use of the existing cross-border energy infrastructure and to further expanding bilateral cooperation in the energy sector.
Writer:Salima Aryaei
