en.Wedoany.com Reported - Iraq has established a multi-departmental government committee to negotiate a new oil pipeline agreement with Turkey before the current deal expires next month. Baghdad is seeking alternative crude export routes to bypass the constrained Strait of Hormuz.

In July 2025, Ankara informed Baghdad of its decision to terminate the 52-year-old agreement governing the Iraq-Turkey crude oil export pipeline from Kirkuk to Ceyhan, which transports oil to Europe and other markets. Turkey declared the agreement would lapse from July 27 this year, necessitating a new deal.

According to Salim Al-Rakabi, spokesman for Iraq's Oil Ministry, the new committee includes officials from the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and representatives from the Kurdistan region, in addition to the Oil Ministry. Al-Rakabi told the official daily Al-Sabah that the committee will manage negotiations with Turkey, involving the drafting of a new agreement to replace the current one regulating Iraqi crude exports to Turkey. The committee is working to reach a clear consensus, including continuing crude exports via the Iraq-Turkey pipeline to maintain stable oil exports to global markets.

The official warned that with the current agreement nearing expiration, both countries need to accelerate discussions to avoid any disruption or interruption in export operations. Turkey last year submitted a more comprehensive draft agreement to Iraq, OPEC's second-largest oil producer, covering pipelines and other areas of energy cooperation. Baghdad officials said at the time they were studying the proposal.

Turkey decided to scrap the pipeline agreement when Iraq exports most of its crude through southern oilfields via the Strait of Hormuz. Iran closed this narrow waterway during its war with the United States and Israel until partially reopening it this month. With the waterway still constrained, Iraq's current oil exports are only one-third of pre-war levels.

Hamza Jawahri, a former petroleum engineer at the state-owned Basra Oil Company, said that given recent regional developments, Iraq needs to secure a favorable agreement with Turkey. Turkey could become a major export corridor as Iraq appears increasingly reliant on pipelines. According to the official news agency, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi plans to visit Ankara next month for talks on a new pipeline agreement and other issues.

Iraq resumed crude exports of about 200,000 barrels per day via the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline in March to offset disruptions in shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. However, this volume represents only a fraction of the country's export potential of over 4 million barrels per day. According to data from the State Oil Marketing Organization, Iraq's oil exports in the first four months of 2026 totaled approximately 236 million barrels (about 1.9 million barrels per day), generating around $16 billion in revenue.