Ankara: Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Alparslan Bayraktar, has announced a new draft agreement concerning the transport of Iraqi oil to the Turkish port of Ceyhan. The agreement also includes cooperation in natural gas extraction and power generation projects.
According to National Iraqi News Agency, the draft, prepared by Turkey and sent to the Iraqi side, proposes collaboration in crude oil and natural gas projects, development of hydrocarbon fields, and partnerships in petrochemical and refining investments, alongside electricity generation and transmission projects.
In a televised interview with the UAE’s Sky News, Bayraktar revealed that the draft was sent at the end of last month for review and negotiation to replace the current agreement expiring on July 26 next year. He explained that the existing deal no longer aligns with global energy demands. Bayraktar highlighted that the Iraqi oil pipeline through Turkey has a capacity of 1.5 million barrels per day but has been underutilized for 50 years, prompting Turkey to propose a new agreement to fully utilize the pipeline’s capacity.
Bayraktar emphasized the importance of avoiding legal disputes and allowing the pipeline to transport the full 1.5 million barrels daily, which represents an annual investment of nearly $40 billion. He also discussed extending the pipeline southward to meet capacity requirements, involving production in northern Iraq, including Kirkuk.
Additionally, the Turkish Energy Minister announced plans to increase his country’s electricity exports to Syria to 900 megawatts by the first quarter of next year. He stressed the significance of energy and water infrastructure for Syria’s recovery, noting the recent success of delivering Azerbaijani gas to Syria through Turkey, facilitated by the Qatar Fund for Development.
Bayraktar detailed that Azerbaijani gas currently flows to Syria at approximately 3.4 million cubic meters per day, with a pipeline capacity of around 6 million cubic meters. Efforts are underway to increase this supply to 6 million cubic meters, which could generate about 1,200 megawatts of electricity, meeting the needs of roughly 5 million Syrian families.
Furthermore, Bayraktar described the ongoing efforts to enhance direct electricity exports to Syria, currently at 281 megawatts through eight points. Turkey aims to raise this to 360 megawatts in the coming weeks, with a long-term goal of exporting an additional 500 megawatts from the Birecik region to Aleppo. Technical work on Syrian territory is required, but by the first quarter of next year, Turkey plans to export approximately 900 megawatts directly to Syria.