Damascus starts shipping petrol to Iraq via Baniyas: goal is 200 tankers a day
Shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz have pushed Iraq to add a new overland route for petrol imports through Syria's coast. Talks on the Kirkuk-Baniyas oil pipeline project have also reached their final stage, officials say.
RastinewsThe Syrian Petroleum Company announced on Sunday that imported petrol has begun moving to Iraq through the Baniyas oil terminal. The company said the shipments fall under a renewable three-month agreement and that daily capacity is planned to rise to about 200 tankers.
Ahmed Kabbaci, the company's deputy general manager for transport and storage, said the first convoy of 57 tankers set out Thursday from the Tanf border crossing. Reuters reported that 77 tankers also moved from Baniyas toward the Iraqi border.
Qatari firm supplies, Damascus collects transit fees
According to Kabbaci, Qatar-based UCC buys the petrol from international suppliers, while Syria handles transport in exchange for a transit fee. Kabbaci said ten tanker ships are currently at sea, two of which have already unloaded at storage facilities in Baniyas.
Tarek Shelash, an official at the Syrian Petroleum Company, said the first cargo was about 32,800 tons of petrol carried by the Marshall Islands-flagged vessel Avanti, which was stored at the Baniyas refinery before being loaded onto tankers. Shelash stressed that the petrol is not produced in Syria and is not drawn from stocks set aside for the Syrian market.
Iraqi Oil Ministry spokesman Assem Jihad confirmed that a contract has been signed between Iraq's State Oil Marketing Company (SOMO) and the Qatari firm, and that shipments are proceeding on a regular basis.
A one-way route turns into a two-way route
Until now, the route had run in only one direction, carrying Iraqi fuel oil overland to Baniyas for export by sea. The National reported that at least 2.1 million tons of Iraqi fuel oil have reached Baniyas by truck since that route opened.
Kabbaci said the company is also considering other border crossings and additional cargo types such as coal and sulfur. In Iraq, the capital Baghdad and several provinces have faced petrol shortages for weeks.
Kirkuk-Baniyas pipeline back on the table
The Syrian Petroleum Company said a memorandum of understanding has been signed with Iraq on the Kirkuk-Baniyas oil pipeline, with Chevron, Total and UCC also involved, and that talks to turn the memorandum into a formal contract have reached their final stage.
According to Syria's state news agency SANA and Reuters, the new route has emerged as part of a US push to bring the two countries closer together. Washington has been working to steer transport routes in Iraq and Syria in its favor since the Iran war began in February.
In July, the two countries agreed, with US mediation, to rehabilitate and reopen the oil pipeline between Kirkuk and Baniyas. The pipeline was shut down by Iraq between 1982 and 2000, and was damaged by US strikes during the 2003 invasion.